


More Than a Woman, More Than a Bride

by LadyoftheMasque



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Arguing, Awkward Flirting, Bottom Gavin Reed, DPD universe, Dead Dove: Do Not Eat, Deliciously Slow Burn, Deviant Upgraded Connor | RK900, Dominant Nines, Drugs, Emotionally distant Nines, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Eventual Romance, Eventual Smut, Forced Bonding, Forced Marriage, Forced Relationship, Fuck Or Die, Gang Violence, Gangs, Gavin and Nines hate each other, Hate to Love, I'm Serious, Immaturity, Jealous Upgraded Connor | RK900, M/M, Masturbation, May be deleted, Nines - Freeform, Oral Sex, Original Character(s), Pacifist Best Ending (Detroit: Become Human), Pet Loss, Playing Hard to Get, Possessive Upgraded Connor | RK900, Protective Upgraded Connor | RK900, Rimming, Romantic Comedy, Rough Sex, Sarcasm, Sassy Gavin, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, Snarky Nines, Strained Relationships, Top Upgraded Connor | RK900, Withdrawn Nines, Wordcount: Over 100.000, pet death, the mother of slow burns
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-30
Updated: 2019-10-08
Packaged: 2020-02-10 11:38:25
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 54
Words: 239,163
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18659680
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyoftheMasque/pseuds/LadyoftheMasque
Summary: When Gavin’s life is threatened for the last time by a violent gang expanding the production of a new drug in Detroit, Captain Fowler must come up with a plan for his safety. Perhaps forcing a marriage between Nines and Gavin wasn’t the best solution he could come up with...





	1. Ouroboros

**Author's Note:**

> How could I NOT write something as crazy and messed up as Gavin and Nines being forced to wed?! I just couldn't hold back.  
> THIS WILL BE A LONGER FIC! IGNORE WHAT I SAID BEFORE! Lots of laughs are ahead for a 'couple' that does NOT like each other...for now ;)

 

**More Than a Woman, More Than a Bride**

“Step aside, dipshits, I got this!!” Gavin Reed shoved his way past officers and androids in the DPD hurriedly, yanking forward a recently arrested gang member of Ouroboros, a new gang that had been nothing but trouble for Detroit in the last year.

Since the end of 2038, the infamous gang rose to full power by not only supporting and supplying the production of Red Ice, but Ouroboros also developed a new drug and placed it on the black market, and it was far worse than Red Ice. The drug was called Slo-Freeze, and it the ‘newest thing’ everyone had to get their hands on.

Slo-Freeze was indestructible. It was easy to be passed around and accessed, as the substance itself wasn’t costly at all to create. Majority of its ingredients could’ve even been made at someone’s house with regular home products, but that’s what also made it so addictive. Slo-Freeze worked its way to the brain, literally freezing its processing and sensory speed by 110% the regular speed, which gave the drug abusers the literal feeling of being frozen in time. Next, it slowed down the heart, and then gave it a nasty jolt, but users stated that it was almost like experiencing the best orgasm that rocketed and shook their bodies right down to the core.

The drug was a huge problem for the DPD, and Captain Fowler was going to put his best men together to remove the drug and the gang that had originated it off the streets. Unfortunately, it was tough to do so, especially when Gavin Reed was promoted from homicide to the narcotics unit.

Nines-previously known as the RK900-had been in charge of leading and organizing the narcotics unit since December of 2038, and he’d been doing a damn good job. He was diligent, organized, thorough, and really knew how to track down drug distribution in the city in a damn hurry. Unfortunately, Nines didn’t get along with Gavin, and refused to even talk to him. Then again, not very many people were fond of Detective Reed to begin with, but Jeffrey Fowler was stuck in a pretty bad dilemma.

Gavin Reed was one of his best men when it came to interrogations, protecting witnesses, and having a passion to do the right thing when it came to justice. Simply put, he was the best at his job, and Jeffrey Fowler didn’t want to lose him at all. Gavin was badly needed in the narcotics unit, especially when Hank and Connor refused to be involved in the ‘Slo-Freeze’ investigations. Having no other choice, Captain Fowler had moved Gavin to the narcotics unit.

As expected, Nines and Gavin were mercilessly at each other’s throats the moment Gavin’s new position was announced to the RK900. After one thousand insults and death glares, Nines finally agreed that he would allow Gavin on his narcotics team provided if Gavin didn’t work directly with him or within an inch of him.

Done deal.

They’d kept to their separate areas and desks, and Gavin’s work schedule had been rearranged so it wouldn’t conflict with Nines’ at all. Truthfully, it was all childish, but he had to go that extra mile to keep his men happy and content. He’d thought about placing Connor and Hank many times by force on the narcotics unit, but they vehemently refused every time the subject was broached.

And Fowler couldn’t blame them for it either; it was simply far too dangerous. Ouroboros were vicious, cold, merciless, and ruthless. They weren’t above threatening someone’s family members, and even going so far as to killing and slaughtering someone’s pets just to make their point. The threats frightened Connor, and seeing as Hank had already suffered the loss of his son all those years ago, he refused to come to work if Fowler put either Connor or Hank himself on the narcotics unit.

There was only one other option: Send in Gavin Reed.

All this would’ve been fine however, but Gavin was receiving a lot of death threats from Ouroboros. Gavin was stubborn, however. He never took any of the threats as seriously as he should have, and he merely shrugged them all off. He received mail, horrible photos that had been purposefully photoshopped to portray himself dying and being tortured in brutal ways, and when his cat had gone missing for a few days after his apartment had been broken into, Jeffrey Fowler knew he had to take severe action. Perhaps Gavin didn’t think it was a serious issue, but as the leader of the DPD, Jeffrey Fowler had to take it seriously.

He watched Gavin yank the arrested Ouroboros member along with him through the halls, no doubt heading for a holding cell. The tall Hispanic man screamed all sorts of profanities at him, but Gavin snorted and shrugged them all off.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, blow it out your ass, man.”

Fowler shook his head and sighed. This wasn’t going to be good.

Gavin roughly handled the gang member, throwing him into one of the closest holding cells. The doors slammed on the man, and Gavin made his way over to his desk to gather his notes before interrogating the gang member. Now was the best time for Fowler to have a little chat with Gavin.

Stepping out of his office quickly, he pulled up a chair and sat down beside Gavin when the Detective kicked his legs up on his desk and cracked his knuckles one-by-one. Fowler scowled at him.

“Gavin, may I speak with you for a moment?”

Cracking his neck, next, Gavin smiled happily at him, not a single care in the world. “What’s up, Cap?”

Fowler emitted a strained sigh, “I’ve told you many times not to talk to me like I’m your drinking buddy, Gavin, now pay attention.”

Gavin shrugged, but folded his hands in his lap as he waited patiently for Fowler to continue speaking.

Fowler rubbed his forehead. This was going to be painful, but he had to press on. He’d seen the threats flooding Gavin’s emails, his letters, everything. It was time to take it all seriously, before someone got hurt.

“Gavin, I know you don’t think Ouroboros will follow up with their threats of killing you, but I sure as hell take them all quite seriously.”

Gavin snorted as he looked up in time to see a delivery android smiling at him as it held a package in its hands.

“Don’t worry, Cap,” Gavin stated in a gleeful tone as the android held out a tablet for him and said: “Delivery for Detective Reed, please sign here!”

Gavin added his e-signature on the tablet before the package was placed onto his desk.

Fowler sighed again. He was about to lose his patience, but he needed to keep it maintained if he was going to talk any sense into Gavin’s head.

“Gavin,” he drew closer to the man and watched as Gavin waved the delivery android off and clutched his package onto his lap. His fingers tore into it quickly.

“…I want to keep you on the narcotics team, son,” he began as he felt his head pounding, “but I need to be sure you’re safe, because right now, I’m losing my beauty sleep worrying about your safety.”

Wrapping paper was thrown carelessly to the floor as Gavin whistled. He held a brand-new bottle of champagne in his hands.

“Ain’t she a beauty, Cap?”

Fowler sighed as he took a glance at the shiny bottle, “Yes, Gavin, it’s lovely. Now please listen to me.”

POP!

Gavin had already taken the cork out, “I’m listenin’!”

Fowler stared at the liquid inside the bottle. It was fizzing and bubbling quite a lot, and it looked pretty delectable right now. He sure could’ve used a drink himself.

“Were you expecting this from anyone?” he asked gently, trying to take his mind off the impending argument with Gavin, but also subtly trying to work it in their conversation that he wanted a sip.

Gavin hummed, “Nah, it’s from an unknown sender.”

Right then and there, Jeffrey Fowler’s heart skipped a beat.

Time slowed down, and all he saw was Gavin winking at him as he said: “Cheers, Cap!” He tilted his head back, and the bottle was inches away from his lips.

“PUT IT DOWN, GAVIN!!!” His hand shot out and slapped the bottle away from Gavin’s hands. It sailed across the bullpen, smashing into the side of another officer’s desk, and immediately, sizzling and hissing noises echoed everywhere.

Everyone stood up in fear, and Connor yelped as he ran forward to examine the fluid that had burnt the desks and carpet as it ate away into the floors like a disease spreading across a land.

Hank hung back, but he looked over Connor’s shoulder as Connor examined the areas the liquid had sprayed.

“Captain!” Gavin screeched, “I was gonna drink that!”

“It’s cyanide!!”

Connor’s cries made both Gavin’s and Fowler’s head snap over to the holding cell, and their eyes zoned in on the Ouroboros gang member. He was laughing the entire time as he threatened that this was only the beginning of Detective Reed’s worries.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

The threats had gotten so bad, that in less than three days after the cyanide incident, Gavin found his apartment had been broken into another two times, with messages written all over his walls in deep red blood.

“Gavin, this is not good,” Connor announced once he’d deciphered the messages sprawled on Gavin’s living room wall.

“No shit,” Gavin spat, still sitting in his shorts and t-shirt. He’d meant to enjoy the warm, bright, sunny summer morning outside, but he’d faced the weird messages written in Spanish all over his walls as soon as he’d exited his bedroom. He didn’t want to call anyone or tell anyone about it, and he’d been halfway through arranging cleaning products to get the blood off the walls when Hank and Connor dropped by for a visit.

Fuck.

Hank immediately rang up Fowler while Connor examined the scene and gathered enough evidence while he could. As they were doing this, Gavin grumbled and growled, irate that Hank had ratted him out to Fowler.

“You got any other bright ideas then?” Hank shot back once Gavin asked him why he’d called Fowler for the third time in less than half an hour.

“Not being a chicken shit would be one of them, Hank,” he answered back as he looked out his balcony window.

Connor placed a hand on his hip as dark cars began parking down below in the streets. Connor felt relief when he recognized the unmarked vehicles Captain Fowler often used when he did not want to be tracked down. “It’s not a ‘chicken shit’ thing to ask for help, Gavin.”

“I don’t care; I’m only showin’ Ouroboros this way that they can control me and run me out of my own home!”

“If you stay here, you’ll die!” Hank screamed angrily, “Is that what you fucking want, Reed?”

Gavin glared up at him as Fowler banged the door open, a few other officers following behind closely.

“I just want to live a normal life,” Gavin whispered out in a barely audible tone.

Once Jeffrey Fowler had taken a good look around the room and received lab results back that the blood on the walls of Gavin’s apartment had been from his own cat, his mind was made up. It was really time to take action, now, and Gavin wasn’t going to like his new idea, but he had to give it a shot, otherwise, there would definitely be a dead Detective on his hands.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin glared at Nines.

The android sat beside him in Captain Fowler’s office, looking straight ahead as he tried avoiding all eye contact with Gavin while their superior took his time to join them. They’d both been pulled away from their duties to have a ‘very important’ meeting, and Gavin couldn’t wait to ask Fowler what the heck the meeting had to do with Nines. He’d never been told that Nines was also joining, and now that Nines was here, Gavin began panicking.

Something definitely had to be wrong, otherwise, why was Nines involved??

It probably had to do with his work on the narcotics unit, he guessed. Since Nines was the head of the team, he’d probably drudged up some bullshit-lame-ass excuse to report him to Fowler just to get him demoted again. Gavin wouldn’t put it past Nines to do this, and this had to definitely be the purpose of their meeting.

He snarled at Nines, anger fueling him greatly. “Finally snitched to Fowler, huh?”

Still staring straight ahead, Nines spoke out: “I don’t know what you’re referring to, Detective Reed.”

“Oh don’t you give me that steaming load of horseshit, Nines!” Gavin almost screamed out, but then remembered they were in an office, and he didn’t want the conversation leaving said office.

He lowered his voice while staring back and forth outside the office and across the bullpen. “You should just admit that you’ve wanted me off your team since the moment Fowler gave me that promotion!”

Looking at him wearily, Nines blinked once, “You forget that I’m still technically your superior, Detective Reed,” his LED light blared red, a silent symbol of a warning that Gavin was almost wandering into territories he shouldn’t have been wandering in.

“…you should know your place, Detective, and know it well.”

Gavin gasped, “Was that a fuckin’ threat, Nines?!”

“Consider it a warning, at best.”

“It was a fuckin’ threat! You threatened me!”

Before Nines could answer him, the door slammed, and Jeffrey Fowler huffed his way inside, carrying two steaming hot cups of coffee. He set one down before Gavin as he got in his chair comfortably.

Gavin accepted it, but not before throwing Nines a scowl as he gripped the mug tightly in his hands.

Fowler stared up at him as he waved around his messy desk, “I’d offer you sugar or cream, Gavin, but I couldn’t find any in the Break Room.”

Gavin shrugged, “It’s fine, just…just tell me why the hell I’m here.”

This made Fowler’s eyebrow rise into the air, “Why do you think you’re here, Gavin?”

Gavin didn’t hesitate to point at Nines, “Because this bitch probably is lying about my work in the narcotics team!”

This earned him a glare from both Fowler and Nines simultaneously.

“Gavin,” Fowler began in a gentle rumble that hit all areas and corners of his office, which meant he was getting very serious about an upcoming warning.

“…watch your tone and language; Nines is still technically one of your leaders, and technically your boss.”

Nines almost smirked, “I concur, which means that as your said boss, I have the ability to reprimand and discipline you, Detective Reed.”

Gavin hissed, “It’s just a stupid power trip, and I won’t put up with any of it from either of you!!”

“Gavin—”

The angry Detective continued, not stopping as his face grew red. “You guys seem to forget that I have been a loyal, hard-working, honest Detective of this precinct for almost fifteen fuckin’ years! I have been here way before this…this piece of plastic waltzed in and took over! If anything, his job should be _mine_!!”

“GAVIN!” Fowler slammed his hands on his desk, causing his own coffee mug to rattle, and some of the contents of it splashed over the rim and got on his desk. Papers were stained and drenched, but Jeffrey Fowler had bigger worries than a few wet papers.

Gavin rose from his seat defiantly, “I’m not gonna sit here and listen to another word if you—”

“SIT THE FUCK DOWN, GAVIN!”

Immediately, upon hearing how thunderous and powerful his Captain’s voice was, Gavin blanched and sat down. “Yes sir.”

Nines snickered, but repressed it when Gavin threw him a heated glare.

Fowler smacked a hand on his desk that demanded attention, and Gavin and Nines looked away from each other and at their Captain right away.

“Fuck it,” Fowler said to himself as he shook his head and braced himself, “I’m just going to get right down to it.” Pointing at Gavin, he said: “Do you know what was written on your wall, Gavin?”

Gavin snorted, “I don’t read or speak Spanish, Cap.”

“Don’t be a fucking smartass right now, Gavin, it’s not the fucking time for that!”

Gavin rolled his eyes, but let Captain Fowler continue while Nines stared straight through Fowler, almost bored.

“The Ouroboros have threatened your life and home, Gavin, but now, they’ve said the next time you’re asleep in your bed, they will snatch you up, rape you, and cut you into tiny pieces.”

Gavin’s face was whiter than the walls, and he swallowed uncomfortably. Nines merely stared on, not caring at all as he sat motionless.

“Captain,” Gavin wheezed out, “wh-what sh-should I—”

Fowler held up a hand to silence him. “You need to be protected, Gavin, and it’s too dangerous for you to stay in your apartment any longer.”

He nodded frantically, “Y-yeah, I’ve come to that conclusion myself, sir.” But where was he to go?! He didn’t want to use his money anywhere, as the Ouroboros could easily track his transactions down, and locate him that way! What was worse was that Gavin knew that wasn’t a small bluff from the gang; Ouroboros members often followed through each of their threats and promises, often to the grave. He really was stuck, and he looked up into his Captain’s eyes desperately.

“Sir?”

Captain Fowler sighed, “Before you interrupt me, Gavin…Nines…” he said calmly as he looked at both of them, “I want you to hear me out and trust me that I wouldn’t ever dream of suggesting this outside of this horrible emergency situation.”

This got Nines’ attention, and he raised an eyebrow as he sat up in his seat. His hands tightened a little on the armrests. “Sir?”

Fowler nodded at him, “I’ll get to you in a minute, Nines, don’t worry.”

Unfortunately, whenever Captain Jeffrey Fowler told someone not to worry, it usually meant: WORRY LIKE CRAZY! This was going to be brutal, and Gavin winced as he prepared himself for what was to come.

Rubbing his chin and closing his eyes as he counted to three and whispered out: ‘why me?’, Fowler eventually stared at Nines and Gavin sitting across from him, and he let out a long, pained sigh.

“Gavin, Nines…” they both sat up eagerly.

“Yes????”

Fowler closed his eyes slowly, feeling his head about to explode. “I’m going to have to ask you both to make wedding arrangements within the next forty-eight hours and Gavin will have to move in with you, Nines.”

The office was horribly silent for at least ten minutes, and then, Gavin stood up, grabbed his chair, and he advanced towards Captain Fowler.

The other man jumped up as he held out his hands, backing away into a corner as he screamed out: “GAVIN! STOP! STOP! HEY! PUT THAT DOWN! GAAAAAAVIIIIN!!!”

There was murder written in Gavin’s eyes as he swung the chair about, “TELL ME THIS IS A FUCKING SICK JOKE, CAPTAIN! YOU TELL ME RIGHT NOW!!”

Clenching his fists tightly at his side, Fowler screamed back: “IT’S NOT A FUCKING JOKE, NOW SIT THE HELL DOWN, GAVIN!!”

In the middle of all this, it was even worse that Nines hadn’t reacted at all. He simply sat with eyes wider than golf balls, and his LED light had turned off. If Fowler didn’t know any better, he could’ve sworn that Nines had shut down after receiving the news of his plans. He didn’t blame the RK900 for wanting to do that, but Nines eventually blinked once at Captain Fowler, and then he too grabbed his chair and threw it across the office.

“STOOOOOOOOOOOP!!!!!!!”

They were about to trash the rest of the office, but Fowler held his ground and screamed out a mighty scream that made everyone outside his office gather around and stare in through the windows surrounding the office.

Fowler roared as he made his way over to the blinds and pulled them down with a ‘shlink!’

“The hell are ya’ll looking at?! Get back to work!!”

Gavin sat down on the floor of the office, rocking back and forth as he cried out repeatedly: “This can’t be happening, this can’t be happening, this can’t be happening!!!!”

Hearing him whimpering and about to break down, Fowler readjusted his tie and straightened his suit as he glared down at Gavin while Nines set his chair down and simply held his face in his hands.

“It sure as shit _is_ happening, Gavin,” Fowler spat, “it’s real life, and it’s the only way I can save your damn life!”

Gavin stood up abruptly, grabbing Fowler’s tie as he yanked him violently forward, “No this isn’t the best you can do!” he argued wildly, his eyes dewy and slightly pink, as if he was going to cry at any minute, “can’t you just arm me with my own personal security guard at all times?!”

Shoving his hands off his tie, Fowler snapped, “I _am_ , Gavin! And your personal security guards is Nines! God damn it!!”

“I don’t want to…” he shook horribly. He couldn’t even bring himself to say the word.

 _Marriage_?!?!? Gavin Reed didn’t have time for marriage! Hell, he hadn’t even been in a relationship in almost three solid years!!! And besides, he wasn’t even the marrying type!!! This was ridiculous!!

“I don’t give a shit what you want, Gavin,” Fowler interrupted as he moved away from him and began fixing up the mess Gavin had created in his violent display of a temper tantrum. “You _will_ head down to city hall and marry Nines in two days, and you _will_ start living together for your own damn good!”

Gavin shook his head as he scowled with every bit of anger he had left in him, despite feeling somewhat drained and sick to his stomach. “No I fucking won’t!”

“Yes you will!”

“You can’t make me!”

“I’ll remove you from the case, Reed!” Fowler threatened, getting up in Gavin’s face as he jabbed a finger into his chest roughly. “Don’t think I won’t do it! I can do it in the blink of an eye, and it’ll be the easiest thing for me!”

Nines, who had still been silently sitting with his head in his hands muffled out: “I’ll d-do it.”

Gavin grinned, “Aha! See?! Nines even said—wait, what?!?!?” He was slow on the uptake, and he nearly crashed down to the floor when his brain registered what the android had said.

“Nines?!?”

Fowler nodded as he pet Nines on the back firmly. “Thank you, Nines, I’m glad you’ve still got some sense in you after all.”

Gavin took a few steps back, almost slamming into the door. “I’m not fucking marrying Nines, and that’s the end of discussion, sir!”

Fowler rolled his eyes as he pressed a hand against his forehead and rubbed it, “It’s just for pretend, Gavin,” he explained in the tone of voice that was normally reserved for talking to a child as opposed to a grown adult.

“…surely _you_ of all people can understand that, somehow?”

Gavin bit his tongue. Although he was unable to retort back, he just shook his head as he glared into Fowler’s dark-yet tired-eyes.

Fowler took a step towards him, gripping both his shoulders tightly as he leaned into him. “I’m not asking you two to get along-god knows I know more than anyone else in here how badly you two hate each other’s guts, and that doesn’t have to change! But please, _please_ for the sake of your own protection and safety, Gavin, do try to hear me out, son.”

Still shaking his head, Gavin inhaled sharply. It felt like his chest was going to explode, and he was certain that if he stayed a minute longer in the office, he would have a nervous breakdown. His throat tightened, his hands were shaking and clammy, and he felt hot and cold all over as he trembled violently.

“Sir…”

“Gavin,” Fowler whispered softly, “do the right thing.”

“But…”

Nines stared into his eyes the exact moment Gavin chose to look over at him in a gesture of confusion. It seemed as if Nines had made up his mind, too, and he gave Gavin a curt nod.

“Just do it, Detective.”

Fowler nodded, “It’s just a fake marriage, Gavin,” he explained as he offered a weak smile, “you can divorce the second the Ouroboros are all locked up and away from you, forever.”

Studying Captain Fowler’s face for any sign of a lie, Gavin eventually didn’t find one. He knew he had to head blindly into this, and he had to put his entire faith and trust in his Captain. After all, Fowler only wanted the best for him, right?? This was the only way he could still work the case and be safe, and as Hank said, he didn’t have any other bright ideas for the time being.

He closed his eyes as the words flew out of his mouth before he could hold them back.

“Fine.”

It was time to plan a wedding.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I literally got the idea of 'Slo-Freeze' from 'Dredd' (2012) because there was a drug in that movie called 'Slo-Mo' which almost mirrors what 'Slo-Freeze' does.


	2. Settling In

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Connor's singing Gwen Stefani's 'Sweet Escape' just because he can leeeel  
> It's a funny song my neighbor was playing downstairs, and the entire time as I wrote this chapter, it was all I could hear, so that's why it's in this story, now.
> 
> Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O0lf_fE3HwA

It’d taken a few days for Gavin just to settle in with the idea that he was now kind of engaged. Soon, he was going to be _married_. That scared the living daylights out of him, as he had no idea what to even do in a marriage…well, a fake one, but still, it was a marriage, nevertheless! There was just too much stress on him, but he was grateful that his parents weren’t aware of what was going on, at least.

Gavin’s parents were old-fashioned Baptists who luckily lived Utah, and they were far the hell away from anything Gavin was doing. Still, that didn’t mean his mother wouldn’t call every so often and cry and ask why Gavin hadn’t found a nice girl to settle down with and have a few children…

The truth was, Gavin knew that deep down inside, he preferred men. He’d fooled around with a few guys in college, but nothing serious had ever come from it. In his entire life, he’d only been with one woman, and it was a huge mistake; a drunken encounter he’d regretted ever since. Gavin knew he was attracted to men, but he’d never had the courage to actually approach a single one, and it was for reasons like his parents having an early heart attack.

But now? Now he was fucking engaged to a _man_ , and there was nothing he could do about it. Once he’d gotten over the shock of it as much as he could, Captain Fowler instructed him to stay in his apartment and pack his belongings so he would be able to at least move in with Nines a day before the ‘wedding ceremony’. That was literally all the time Gavin had to himself, and he officially considered this day the very last day he was a single man.

It burned. It hurt. It sucked.

He needed help, however. He had far too much shit with him to take all by himself, and Connor had always told him he was welcome to ask if he needed help…so he rang up Connor and Hank, and very soon, the two men were inside his apartment. Connor was overjoyed as he sat with Gavin in his bedroom, folding clothes and packing them up in two large suitcases. Hank stood by and kept guard if anything suspicious went on, but he helped now and then…by helping himself to food in Gavin’s kitchen.

The Detective was too exhausted to say anything, and he soon found himself alone with Connor. It was almost 11 a.m. when Gavin sat back and groaned as he held his head in his hands.

“I can’t do this, Connor!” he cried out in anguish and despair, “I can’t get married!!”

Connor nodded, placing a comforting hand on Gavin’s shoulder as he whined and held his head down. “Gavin, it’s for your own benefit,” Connor explained softly as he looked up when Hank walked in the room while munching on a peach.

“I know!” Gavin groaned as he sat up, “but I just can’t…I don’t know…this is all too fuckin’ soon for me.”

Hank wiped his lips as he snickered, “It’s not like Nines is having an easier time with this either, Reed.”

Gavin growled, “That’s easy for _you_ to say, Hank! For all we know Nines is probably as straight as an arrow!!” A weird part of him deep inside suddenly made him freeze up after he’d uttered this statement. It was only now that Gavin really began to wonder if Nines even had a sexuality. He looked at Connor, as if wondering the same thing about the RK800, but he couldn’t just ask; it was none of his business, and he really wasn’t interested in Connor’s or Nines’ love lives at all.

Connor gave him a pained look as he said: “I wouldn’t have any information about that either way, Gavin, but the question is, are _you_ going to be okay with the knowledge that your marriage will be made public to keep the Ouroboros off your back for a while?”

This was a very strong question Gavin hadn’t even thought of. The entire purpose of the marriage was to not only ensure that Gavin had around-the-clock protection, but also to send off a sign and a warning message to the Ouroboros that Gavin wasn’t alone; he was with someone else who was the head of the narcotics unit, as well as leading the case against the gang.

Sure, it was a marriage that would kill two birds with one stone, but there would be whisperings, gossip, and he wasn’t sure for how long the marriage would even last…what if his parents found out?!

He sighed as he sat down on his bed and popped an Ibuprofen dry. After he’d swallowed it down painfully, he grunted as he looked at Hank and Connor, “I’m not afraid of people we work with knowing I’m gay; I’m just not sure I’m okay with it bein’ with Nines…that’s all.”

Hank’s jaw suddenly fell open, and he nearly dropped his peach, “You’re gay??”

Connor threw him a nasty glare, and Hank held up a hand, as if Connor had pointed a weapon at him. “I’m just asking…sorry…”

Gavin rolled his eyes, grabbing whatever else he needed from his drawers and night tables, “Well,” he began in a soft voice, “I don’t know if I _am_ really gay, because I’ve never…” he winced. He couldn’t believe he was saying all this out loud to his co-workers.

“…I’ve never done anything with a guy except kissing, groping, and a quick hand job, honestly.”

Hank looked a little sick, but he fought a smile onto his face as he nodded while staring at his peach, “Seems fair, Reed.”

Connor smiled a genuine smile, not at all uncomfortable or unnerved about Gavin’s sexual history and experiences. “It’s going to be okay, Gavin,” he said in a consoling tone as he rubbed Gavin’s back when he got up to sit beside him on the bed. “Nines isn’t bad, and trust me, he’ll be the one to help you and look out for you the most.”

Hank nodded in agreement, “He’s right, Reed! Your chances of surviving are better with Nines for sure.”

While Gavin’s brain knew this and agreed with it, his heart was screaming in the opposite direction. It didn’t matter how convenient this marriage was for his own benefit; he didn’t want to marry Nines, and he didn’t have any feelings other than animosity towards him. It was just that simple for him, and likely would never ever change.

He didn’t want to focus on that, for now. Getting up to his feet, he clapped his hands once as he ushered Connor and Hank out of his room.

“Move it, guys,” he said with a playful grin on his face, “I gotta get somethin’ nicer on before we drive to Nines’ place.”

As he gently closed the door behind his friends, his playful, confident grin collapsed into a fearful, worried look that only expression how scared and confused he really was.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin was so happy that Hank’s large Ford truck was able to contain enough room for all his belongings and then still have leftover room for himself and Connor to sit. The RK800 sat in the backseat with Gavin while Hank drove with a few boxes of Gavin’s belongings stacked up high on top of each other on the seat.

Gavin had looked out the window regretfully as they drove in the late afternoon, and as they got further and further away from his apartment, the hole in his heart grew larger and larger.

“If I could escape and recreate a place that’s my own world! And I could be your favorite girl forever, perfectly together! Tell me boy now wouldn’t that be sweet?”

Gavin winced as he tried drowning out the annoying sing-song voice of Connor when Hank had turned on the stupid radio and that song had played on. Connor was apparently in a good mood, and he swung his head and body happily and merrily sang on as he closed his eyes and waved his hands in the air.

Shaking his head at Connor next to him, Gavin frowned up at Hank in the driver’s seat. “Couldn’t you have turned on the radio to something else, Hank?!” This song really was fucking annoying the hell out of him, and it did nothing for his nerves as they drove past thickets of trees.

Hank scratched his beard as he chuckled, “Don’t be so grouchy, Reed, you’re gonna love the area Nines lives in!”

“The sweet escape!”

This was a punch to the gut.

So Nines lived in a better neighborhood only a year after he’d started in the narcotics unit at the DPD? Great. Gavin wasn’t even going to bother to voice this aloud; he was far too pissed, himself. He’d spent many years slaving away at the DPD, and finally, after fifteen years of being everyone’s dog, he’d gotten a promotion. But now he had heard that Nines was living the dream life?!

Fuckin’ androids.

Connor threw his head back and howled, “If I could be sweet! Sorry boy! I know I’ve been a real bad girl!!!”

Gavin bit his tongue and coughed as the coppery taste of blood filled his mouth. This made him go into an even fouler mood, even though he was dressed in freshly washed and ironed black slacks, a new grey t-shirt, and had even shaved nicely after taking a quick shower. He looked like a million bucks, but for what?

For Nines?!

For someone who had hated him from the moment he laid eyes on him?? Who the hell was he kidding?!

Hank studied his angry expression from the rearview mirror and snickered, “Shouldn’t you be happy, Reed?”

Connor crowed out as he tickled Gavin’s chin with an index finger, “I’ll try to change!”

Gavin frowned at him as he tugged on his seatbelt, “Why the hell should I be happy, Hank??”

“I didn’t mean for you to get hurt, whatsoever!”

Hank shrugged, “It’s the day of your engagement; most people are happy when shit like this goes down in their lives, ya know.”

Still singing, Connor practically screamed out: “We can make it better! Tell me boy now wouldn’t that be sweet?”

Gavin raised an eyebrow at Hank, “Oh, sure Hank! Most people would be happy for sure,” he began in a sarcastic tone, “but you see, most people aren’t gettin’ hitched to someone they absolutely can’t fuckin’ stand within an inch of their life!!”

“Sweet escape, sweet escape!”

Hank hummed, still keeping a calm demeanor while Connor’s singing overpowered Gwen Stefani’s on the radio. “You can’t head into this with that attitude, Reed,” Hank began in the form of a lecture as he peered over his shoulder at Gavin, “you gotta just take this opportunity to work the case, but also try to set your differences aside with Nines once and for all.”

Gavin snorted, “My differences?!?”

“If I could escape, if I could escape!”

Hank nodded, “Yeah! It’s not entirely impossible for you to get along with Nines, Reed; after all, he _is_ technically your boss so long as you keep working in the narcotics unit…”

Gavin didn’t need to hear it. How many more people were going to remind him that Nines was above him, better than him, more intelligent than him, more talented than him? He could take it from Fowler, but he didn’t need to hear it from Hank, too. He turned away and glared out the window, crossing his arms over his chest as his mind drummed up images of himself strangling Nines somehow.

“I don’t want to get along with Nines, Anderson, and if you—”

“Cause I’ve been acting like sour milk all on the floor, it’s your fault you didn’t shut the refrigerator! Maybe that’s the reason I’ve been acting so cold!!”

He couldn’t take it anymore. He just couldn’t.

He roared as he sat up and gripped the back of Hank’s seat, “Shut the damn radio off, Hank.”

Begrudgingly, Hank obeyed.

“If I could es—aww…!!” Connor’s eyes flew open, and he frowned, “Why’d you turn it off??”

“Because I’m tired, Connor!” Gavin threw out angrily, turning to stare out the window again, but his jaw fell open and he gasped when he saw the beauty of the neighborhood they’d pulled up in.

It was definitely one of the more well-to-do areas in Detroit, and it practically made Gavin’s eyes bug out as he gaped through the window at the houses that were more like mansions, and no doubt were at least a few million dollars in price range.  Even Connor had grown silent beside him as he leaned next to Gavin and peered out the window.

Luscious trees that were healthy had many extending branches that bore wonderfully sweet fruit. The smell of cherry blossoms blew about, the grass was greener and livelier, and the front yards were vast and decorated by people who really knew how to spend their money in the right ways. Most of the houses were at least four levels high. Gavin guessed that doctors, lawyers, engineers, and the most hard-working and well-regarded members of society owned the houses on the street called Bishop Street.

Such a stupid name, but the pretentious people who no doubt lived here deserved it, Gavin supposed. He only wondered which of the fancy mansions Nines owned, as Hank kept driving further and further down the street. No doubt, anyone who did higher-paying jobs for a living definitely deserved to own such a spot on a street comprised of such enormous houses, but Nines didn’t deserve it! Did he?? He was just doing the same shit they all did, only he was able to lead and organize his own team now, that was all!!! What did Nines have that Gavin didn’t?

Turning to Connor, the question had been dancing on the tip of his tongue, but Gavin he knew asking such a question or bringing it up in any context would be absolutely rude in front of his friends. He had no choice but to keep his curiosity to himself, and as long as he knew who he was, and as long as he knew of his own accomplishments, he figured it was good enough for him. He didn’t need society giving him a fucking medal for doing the right thing. Fuck that life!

Still, it didn’t help his mood at all, and he could barely keep the hiss out of his voice as he spat out: “So which house belongs to Nines, Anderson?”

Hank looked back down at the neatly folded piece of paper in his hands. Nines’ neat handwriting displayed that his house number was one-hundred-eighty-six. Hank looked back up at the current house to his left, and it was a brown bricked house with a shiny golden plaque on the center of the garage door and it read one-hundred-twenty. They had a long way to go before they reached Nines’ house, so he pressed down on the gas pedal and sped through the winding path of the lovely street.

“Just enjoy the sights, Reed,” Hank sighed as he rolled down his window and let his arm hang out, fingers twitching as they played with the warm, gentle breeze.

Gavin fumed at him, “How can I enjoy anything around here?! I’m being drafted, at this fuckin’ point!”

Connor giggled as he elbowed Gavin playfully, “It’s okay to be in a bad mood for now, Gavin,” he winked at Gavin, “you’ll perhaps enjoy things greatly after you spend more time on this street!”

Gavin only growled as the car drove on.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

They eventually stumbled upon a dark brown bricked house; three levels high with a black shingled rooftop. The windows of the house had a few curtains pulled down, so that very little light emanated forth from the house. It was already starting to get a little dark, as the early summer sun had given them enough of a visit as they spent the entire day packing and chatting before they’d driven out to Nines’ home.

Gavin felt his stomach churning as he sat back and unbuckled his seatbelt when Hank cried out: “Fucking hell, we’re finally here!!”

Connor excitedly opened the doors, yanking a few of Gavin’s suitcases with him while Hank put on his sunglasses. He paused as he opened the door and peeked over at Gavin.

“Reed! You okay?”

Gavin took a few sharp breaths as he gripped the edge of the seat, “Yeah…I’m uh…I’m right behind you guys.”

Reluctantly, he got up.

With a racing heart and a shaking body despite the warm temperature, Gavin carried a few of his other packed belongings as he stared at the cement plaque resting on top of the center of the garage door with black ink displaying the number one-hundred-eighty-six. He was at the right house, and it was practically the very last house located on Bishop street. And boy, was it ever a beauty.

Leave it to Nines to own such a magnificent place, indeed.

The front yard was a garden unlike anything Gavin had ever seen, with even a small, miniature greenhouse off between the space that separated Nines’ house from his neighbor’s. All sorts of wild roses and flowers danced about in the wind, as if welcoming everyone to drop by and sniff at them. And they smelled lovely. Not a single weed was to be found in the grass, and a large birdbath and water fountain that was built and shaped like an angel carrying a baby in its arms was the centerpiece as cold, beautiful waters trickled down.

Gavin was more than envious; he was enraged at the beauties all around.

Gavin was almost afraid to step up and climb the marble stoned steps leading up to the front porch towards the front door of the giant house. The front porch was decorated in an elegant display of flowers in vases that Gavin was more than positive had been flown in from other countries to be planted right there in the flowerbeds and expensive-looking vases.

Colors of gentle purple and pink were neatly stacked in a bush right beside the steps, and flowerpots with red and marigold flowers planted within them hung from the ceiling of the roof in front of the door, lined neatly along the front porch. Extravagant tables, benches, and chairs lined up along the walls, and everything just was so damn neat about the place that it made Gavin’s skin crawl.

And to think that Nines owned this all…

Connor whistled a little merry tune as he skipped up to the door, and he was about to ring the bell, when Hank slapped his hand down.

“Wah?!”

Hank grinned, “I think the blushing bride-to-be should be the first one to see Nines, don’t you think, Connor?”

Gavin groused, “Fuck you both.”

Still, Gavin held his bags firmly in one hand, and then he raised the other-a very shaky hand-to press the doorbell to alert Nines he was here and ready to be ‘welcomed’ in. But just as he had gathered his nerve and was about to ring, the door opened, reflecting the little sunlight that was peeking up over the clouds into Gavin’s eyes.

The mahogany oak of the front door was swung open to the side, revealing Nines’ pale face before Gavin’s. Strangely, the android was dressed in casual clothing which consisted of black chino pants, and a black Oxford shirt. He wore no shoes, and Gavin had taken a moment to stare at Nines’ bare feet before he felt Hank shoving him a little to get him moving.

He stammered, “Umm…uh…hey?”

He could almost hear Hank facepalming behind him.

Nines wasn’t amused. “Hmm, good evening, everyone. So nice of you all to come by.” Though Nines had stated it politely, it fell flat, and it was beyond dull, as if somehow forgetting their new arrangements from now on.

Connor shoved Gavin aside, “Howdy, Nines!”

A smile was upon the RK900’s face, and he hugged Connor gently, “Connor.”

Hank wheeled in Gavin’s suitcases quickly, and Nines held open the door and stepped back to make room for all of Gavin’s belongings.

He studied each of them with an unreadable expression as Gavin glared at him.

Finally looking up, Nines turned to Hank, “I trust you had little-to-no-trouble finding your way to my home?”

Hank chuckled as he ran a hand through his hair and readjusted it. “No, not really,” he threw his hair over his shoulder as he pointed out one of the large windows in the main foyer, “My lucky GPS system really helped, don’t worry, Nines.”

Nines smiled politely before turning around and leading them down the large hallway.

Gavin took off his shoes and placed them neatly on the shoe placemat to the left of the door. He was almost leaning against the wall as he did the deed, but not right up against it so as to not disturb the cream-colored walls. God forbid if he even got a fingerprint on Nines’ perfect walls; he was certain the android would have a heart attack.

The floorboards were a dark mahogany color, matching the front door perfectly. Gavin decided that they had been recently mopped and dusted, for he could practically count each hair strand on his head in the reflection meeting his curious gaze in return when he stared down at the floor.

Fuckin’ Nines and his stupid perfection! Damn him!

“Hank?” Nines called over his shoulder as he headed towards an enormous kitchen that was the entire space of Gavin’s whole apartment, “would you like anything to drink? Any refreshments you prefer?” Nines had asked this so courteously, watching Hank shrug off his black coat and taking it from him gently as he placed it on the back of a large wooden stool by the kitchen counters.

Hank beamed at him and stuffed his hands in his pockets as he took off his sunglasses and folded them neatly in his shirt pocket.

“You’re a wonderful host, Nines,” he winked at Connor, “I have a thing or two to learn...”

Gavin rolled his eyes pathetically.

Nines opened the large, silver Samsung French Door fridge as he beckoned Hank over. “I have a variety of things you just might like.”

Gavin peered over Hank’s shoulder and snorted rudely, “Why would you stock up your fridge? You’re an android! You don’t need to eat or drink!”

Not even bothering to look at him, Nines ground out, “I was told to do so prior to your arrival, Detective Reed,” he stepped away from the fridge and let Hank skim around the inside of it, “now if you would be so kind as to—”

Sensing an argument about to come, Hank interrupted quickly, “Oh, some Dr. Pepper would be just fine!”

Nines tilted his head, wearing a cold expression that clearly displayed that although Hank had been quick to ‘save’ him from an argument, he didn’t appreciate being interrupted either way.

 _“Jesus Christ,”_ Gavin thought to himself while Hank reached inside the fridge and grabbed the can of Dr. Pepper he wanted. He mentally face-palmed when Hank spat out: “Thank you!” He nearly forgot what a stickler Nines was for manners and being courteous, and he only wondered how he was going to live with this android…man…thing. Gavin wouldn’t necessarily call himself a pig anytime soon, but he wasn’t exactly a ‘gentleman’, either. He loved to belch loudly, he loved to throw his dirty socks and underwear around on the floors, and he loved to sleep in the nude and walk around in the buff half of the day on weekends…this was going to be brutal, as he didn’t think Nines would ever abide by him belching up a storm after soda and cheese pizza every Saturday night.

Nines stepped back and leaned against a kitchen counter as he smiled at Hank and Connor, “Would you two like to stay for a bit?”

Hank shook his head as he downed his drink and wiped his lips on the back of a hand, “Sorry Nines! It’s just better to leave you guys to it!”

He was already grabbing Connor’s hand, and while the RK800 was poking around in one of the kitchen cupboards, Hank dragged him all the way back to the foyer.

Gavin immediately panicked, and he ran after them.

“No! Wait!” He cried out pathetically, “You guys just can’t leave me now!!”

Hank grabbed Connor’s shoulders, already opening the front door. “We did our job, Reed,” he stated hurriedly as he let Connor hold his cool drink, “and our job was to get you here safely, and we did our job well enough!”

Connor nodded, “You know what they say, Gavin…” Hank stepped out, and Connor held onto the door handle as he slowly closed the door behind himself.

“…never get involved in the affairs of a married couple!”

Gavin called out, “But we’re not married!!!”

The door slammed, and he was left all alone with Nines. Never had he felt so lost, abandoned, and frightened in his entire life before. The soft pattering of feet approaching behind served as a reminder that the bane of his existence wasn’t too far away behind him.

Gavin groaned as he turned around and faced Nines.

He was met with a cold stare, and Nines looked down at his large suitcases and boxes littering the main foyer as if they were all junk or piles of garbage instead. Then again, perhaps to Nines, they certainly seemed that way…

Fuckin’ asshole.

Nines took a step towards Gavin as he stood even taller than Gavin pictured him normally standing. “Detective Reed,” he began in a faint whisper, “please head on to the second floor while I collect the rest of your…” he paused, eyes squinting, “...things and bring them up with me. You’ll find that I’ve already set out a separate room for you, and it is located by the guest bathroom, second room to the left of the linen closet.”

Eager to get the hell away from Nines, Gavin nodded and headed on upstairs.

_“Does he really trust me to search his house and go through shit as I please?”_

He truly had to wonder just how much of this was going to be ‘his home’, but he wasn’t holding his breath in the department of ‘Nines is a kind husband’ anytime soon. It was much better to assume that Nines was going to treat him like a nuisance, and the sooner he got the fuck out of Nines’ way, the better it would be for them both.

Gavin ascended the grand black-banister staircase, the railings decorated with dark green wild-life-like vines curling and twisting handsomely around the railings. The carpeted floor warmed up his bare feet, as he felt each footstep sink into the cream-colored carpets which supported the strong steps. However, before Gavin could gaze around more, he found the steps were coming to an end to as he neared the second floor.

Windows stood massively, pouring in the bright orange sunlight from outside. The windows were almost the same height as Gavin himself, and they curled in a circular motion upwards throughout the right side of the house facing the staircase. Gavin wondered who decorated the house and how much time it took them to do so. The house was very perfect in its own way, and a grand, expensive chandelier glinted and twirled high above on the fancy ceiling over top it all.

Finally, he had reached the first door to the left of a decent-sized linen closet that was half the size of his entire bedroom, and he walked past it, regaining some energy and feeling his stomach rumble as he approached the second door to the left and pulled the thick, golden doorknob open.

It was a lightly decorated room: a large flat-screened Macintosh laptop that was at the very least over $5000 sat on top of a silver-colored, thin-framed desk, the screensaver set to famous paintings and sculptures Gavin could only stare at in awe and admiration. The walls of the bedroom were painted in dark red, making the room appear darker than it normally would have been at this time of day. Behind the silver desk supporting the laptop were large vertical windows leading the way to a little balcony decorated with a few flowerpots and a single statue of Cupid about to shoot forth an arrow. On the walls were a few paintings Gavin couldn’t recognize, but most had to have been purchased from a famous art gallery, for they were quite marvelously designed, and the colors were radiant and mystifying.

In the center of the bedroom was a large four-poster bed that was longer and wider than anything Gavin had even seen in a fancy home-decorating magazine. The sheets were satin, and they were as red as the walls. The pillows were large and fluffy, and the entire room smelled of something so fresh and clean that it practically made Gavin want to fall face-first into the mattress and take a deep whiff of whatever the hell it was.

A small deer-skin rug was at the foot of the bed, but Gavin peered down and was grateful it wasn’t authentic. At least Nines wasn’t supporting poaching, he thought.

He found a large standing closet to the far-right of the room, with shelves and rows emptied and waiting for his belongings and clothes to be placed and hung up within them. To the right of the bed, there was a large, black dresser, and an even bigger gothic-styled mirror stood high and tall above the dresser.

This seemed so…so much like Nines. The way he’d behaved at work, the way he’d socialized, Gavin had automatically pegged him as a posh, stuck-up asshole, and his entire house reeked of it too, now. Gavin was so happy to know that his intuition about Nines hadn’t been incorrect at all.

In the far-left-hand corner of the room, a little fireplace stood directly below a large 70-inch flat screen TV mounted highly on the wall to the left side of the desk, the fire obviously turned off and a few black piles of firewood resting in the hearth.

Gavin shivered, for this room did not have a carpet, but the same mahogany wooden floorboards as the main floor of the house. The ceiling had stylish silver pot lights implanted and embedded within, and they were too bright for Gavin to peer up into when he tried admiring them.

Gavin nodded, clearly impressed as he turned and gave Nines a small smile. “I like it, Nines!” he smiled even wider, “it’s very impressive, and not too shabby of a place you got yourself.”

Rolling one of his suitcases across the floorboards, Nines scowled at him. “If I wanted your opinion, Detective Reed, I would’ve simply asked for it.”

Ouch.

What a wonderful start.

Gavin glared at him, “I was just trying to be nice, Nines, no need to be a fuckin’ dick!”

Throwing one of the suitcases down roughly, Nines took a few long steps over towards Gavin, and leaned down into his face as he snarled while his LED light switched from yellow to red.

“Listen well, Detective Reed,” his voice was like ice that spread along Gavin’s body, and the man shivered as he backed away a little, just so he had some space between his body, and Nines’.

“I’m not as eager to allow you in my home, and if it weren’t for Captain Fowler, I’d never accept this, never!” Nines practically roared as he advanced more, “Just because we’re to be married in another day, doesn’t mean we’re going to be friends, doesn’t mean we’re going to get along, and it certainly doesn’t mean I have to speak to you any more than I already am! So you just keep to yourself, work on the case as efficiently and quickly as you can, and keep your curiosity out of my personal life! Do you hear me?!”

Gavin could only gape at Nines as he felt the back of his legs hitting the foot of the bed. He stopped backing away from the android, and he merely swallowed just to keep his throat moist.

“I said: Do you hear me, Detective Reed?” Nines asked again when Gavin was silent for too long.

Gavin nodded, “Yeah…y-yeah, I got it, Nines…”

What else was he to say, really? He was honestly scared of what an angry Nines was capable of, and he could only hang back like a little mouse as Nines straightened his shirt out and huffed at him. His LED light went back to yellow, and he turned on his heel as he began exiting the large room.

“You know where the fridge is, you know where the stove is. You’re in charge of preparing your own meals; I won’t dote on you, I won’t wait on you, and I certainly won’t offer you anything.”

With that said, Nines slammed the door behind himself and made his way back downstairs.

Gavin huffed after he’d left, and he turned around as he brushed back a few loose bangs away from his eyes and forehead.

“I can’t believe it,” he whispered to himself as he let out a strained laugh, “my fiancé’s an asshole!!”

_“God damn you, Jeffrey Fowler!”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Gavin ! Still not 100% comfortable with his sexual orientation, and now he's stuck with a 'partner' who hates him :( 
> 
> Also, guys, I've decided that I am going to make this fic kind of long. It's just too funny, and I want to make it into a 'slow burn'. But as a result, I WILL have to make the chapters a lot shorter from now on (like 2,500-3000 words tops).  
> There will be more chapters, as the story will spread out along them, but just letting people know this because I'm known for writing long ass chapters, my mans!


	3. Not a Gentleman

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we find out more about Ouroboros in this chapter, my mans!  
> Oh, and if anyone likes classical music by any chance, Nines was indeed listening to Johann Strauss, Liebeslieder op. 114
> 
> Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5fhZ80XPhY
> 
> It's very soothing, and just the thing Nines in this fic would totally listen to lol

It had taken Gavin almost up until nightfall to unpack and decorate his new room. Though he worked through the day under the impression that his entire apartment would never fit in the room he was provided with, he found that no matter how many of his own personal belongings he’d brought with him, the room he was to stay in still had plenty of extra space for him to store things in. Perhaps he should’ve gone shopping for random, meaningless crap, just to piss Nines off and store the garbage, extra stuff he didn’t even need in the room until it exploded…yes, that was a sound idea.

Gavin didn’t know what else to do when the unpacking was finished, but his stomach grumbled, reminding him that he should’ve eaten almost two hours ago. But he didn’t want to go downstairs!!! His moody fiancé was there, likely brooding as usual, and Gavin didn’t want to get into an argument…not on an empty stomach, anyway.

Having no other choice and not wanting to starve to death, Gavin opened the bedroom door, and he’d barely poked his head out when he heard the gentle playing of classical music from the first-floor of the mansion. It was so serene, gentle, and lovely, that it beckoned him to go down despite his initial fears. Now, all he wanted to do was to follow the sweet melody until it was directly by his ears where it could soothe and relax him further.

Gavin wandered the house, eventually locating the source of the beautiful, soothing classical music. It was coming from large black speakers that were placed in every corner of a large drawing room. At least…Gavin supposed it was a drawing room, but he couldn’t be so sure, seeing as leather sofas were placed on walls facing each other on opposite sides of the room, and plenty of desks with maps, laptops, notes, as well as other strange artefacts and heirlooms Gavin never thought Nines would own were strewn about the room. It all seemed so…homey, and that wasn’t a thought Gavin could associate with Nines.

The damn thing was a machine; not a person! Nines maybe thought he was a human and had his own personality, but at the end of the day, he was just a huge dick with an exaggerated sense of self-superiority. That was all there was to it, and Gavin didn’t need to think about Nines anymore. After all, he didn’t want to ruin his appetite! 

He focused on the lovely classical music, wondering who the composer was, when there was movement in the right-hand corner of the room. It nearly went missed, but Gavin saw a hand tilting upwards with the flick of a wrist.

As Gavin approached, he saw Nines leaning back in a ruby red armchair that must’ve cost a fortune. The cushion was thick, the fabric emanated and glowed warmth and comfort. The curtains were drawn down over the windows, but the dim lights in the room revealed to Gavin that Nines was leaning back with his eyes closed, his LED light yellow as his wrists flicked slightly in time with the music playing softly on the thin speakers.

_“Glad to know that he listens to music that’s as pretentious as he is…”_

Gavin took a step backwards, not wanting to disturb whatever the fuck it was that Nines was up to. He’d barely inched back a few steps when Nines drawled out in a deep growl, “Liebeslieder Waltz, Opus 114, composed by Johann Strauss.”

Swallowing down his anxiety, Gavin spat out, “I didn’t say anything!!”

Nines had his eyes still closed. “You didn’t need to,” he whispered, finally opening his eyes as his LED light turned blue, “I can hear your thoughts miles away.”

Well, this was insulting. Nines had to go and be a jerk again who was well-versed in the skill of passive-aggressive morose bullshit. Gavin didn’t need to hear it, especially before he’d eaten something.

“I’d just prefer it if you straight-up insulted me instead of being such a pretentious bitch about everything,” he ground out as he clenched his fists at his sides, willing himself not to throw a punch at the android sitting in the armchair before him.

Nines glared at him as he crossed a long leg over the other while managing to look so poised. “And I’d just prefer it if you knocked before rudely entering my rooms; I was working.”

Gavin snorted as he placed his hands on his hips, “You were listenin’ to your stupid music, Nines,” he looked over at the rest of the room, just in case Nines was hiding evidence of really having been at work.

“…I don’t see any bit of work around here.”

Nines sighed as he folded his hands in his lap, “I was mentally going over reports on what everyone already knows about Ouroboros.”

Oh.

Gavin had somehow forgotten that androids could do this without using technology, and he stood awkwardly before sniffing and shrugging it all off. “Okay…so fuckin’ what?”

Nines seemed like he was on the verge of an explosion. His fingers twitched, but he looked over at the speakers before he grabbed a small remote and turned down the volume of the music. Sitting back in his chair, his eyes flickered over Gavin’s form, and he scoffed, as if highly displeased with Gavin in some way. It pissed Gavin right off, but he pushed it aside as he tried getting whatever information about Ouroboros or Slo-Freeze as he could from Nines.

“Detective Reed,” Nines began in a haughty tone that projected nothing but arrogance, “do you even know the commonalities of the physical appearances of the members of Ouroboros?”

What a stupid question. Of course he did!

Gavin rolled his eyes, “Yeah, they are all doped-up and look like a bunch of freaks who like running around and killing people’s cats and shit!”

Nines sighed again as he shook his head. “Their tattoos, what have you noticed about their tattoos?”

Gavin frowned, “Huh?”

“You know Detective,” Nines began as he stared intently at Gavin, “for someone who’s worked in the Precinct for as many years as you claim, and having handled major homicide cases, you really can be quite daft at times.”

What an insult.

Gavin rolled his shoulders back, as if he were prepared for a fight. “Alright Nines,” he spat out coldly, “no need to be a jerk!”

Nines’ eyes squinted at him, “You just booked and arrested a gang member the other morning, and you are incapable of telling me about the tattoo on the inside of his forearm?” Nines shook his head, “How inept.”

“Hey! I’m not inept!” Gavin argued back, “I saw the fuckin’ thing!”

“Oh really?”

“Yeah!”

Nines scoffed, “Describe it for me, if you will.”

Gavin stuck out his chin, “Alright then, it was a…umm…fuck…”

Grinning coldly as his eyes shined brightly, Nines sat up. “Ouroboros members have the design of a serpent eating its own tail in a circle brandished on their flesh, Detective. Everything they do relies heavily on this symbol,” Nines explained coolly, as if he were merely discussing his favorite movie or song instead of the history about a dangerous gang.

“The symbol of the serpent devouring itself originated from Ancient Egypt, but when it made its way to Western history, its effects weren’t forgotten. According to Jungian psychology, the Ouroboros symbol has been said to have a meaning of infinity or wholeness. In the age-old image of the Ouroboros lies the thought of devouring oneself and turning oneself into a circulatory process, for it was clear to the more astute alchemists that the prima materia-that is a formless primeval substance regarded as the original material of the universe, so you know-of the art was man himself. The Ouroboros is a dramatic symbol for the integration and assimilation of the opposite, or of the shadow, if you will. This ‘feed-back’ process is at the same time a symbol of immortality, since it is said of the Ouroboros that he slays himself and brings himself to life, fertilizes himself and gives birth to himself. He symbolizes the One, who proceeds from the clash of opposites, and he therefore constitutes the secret of the prima materia which ... unquestionably stems from man’s unconsciousness.”

As if that hadn’t been enough of a mouthful, Nines continued on, “Unlike other gangs, Ouroboros don’t show discrimination when it comes to ethnicity; they accept with open arms different members running different crime-unit cells from various backgrounds. This is part of what makes it so difficult for law enforcement to track their crimes and activities,” he stated with a stern look upon his face, “it’s due to how randomly they select and accept their members. They hold no bias, you see…as long as one has the mind and will to become a member, that is all it takes most days to be a part of Ouroboros. They’re run by a single, cohesive thought: ‘blood for blood’.”

Biting one of his fingernails, Gavin let out a small half-shrug, “So all it takes to be recruited in this secret club is ‘be bat-shit-insane’; doesn’t seem all that difficult! There’s tons of gangs already like that running all over Detroit, but at the end of the day, they’re all a bunch of drug addicts who think they can take on the world!”

Nines shook his head and then wagged a finger at Gavin, as if scolding a child. “That’s where you’re quite wrong, Detective…,” he began as he corrected Gavin swiftly, “…Ouroboros _never_ use drugs. In fact, they have something else that leaves them unstoppable, often…” his eyes flickered dangerously over at Gavin’s, then, “…they have willpower, and they’re not afraid to die. That’s what fuels them, and they’re not afraid to die for their own cause if they see fit.”

Gavin’s mind was truly blown away by how much knowledge Nines had accrued on the Ouroboros. He was horribly jealous, and he was unable to hold it back as he spat out, “Impressive, Nines, so what’s the fuckin’ point of all this?”

Nines waved a hand at him, “How it came to be that you were promoted to become a part of my narcotics team and work on one of the most dangerous, and most difficult cases when you don’t even have the intelligence to fill an eggcup is beyond me, Detective Reed.”

Wanting to be as haughty and as rude as Nines, Gavin poked his chin out while scowling down at Nines, “Perhaps I was able to pull it off due to my manly charms.”

“I highly doubt that,” came the cold reply right back within a second.

Gavin felt the heat rising off his cheeks, but before he could throw insults across the room at Nines, the android stood to his full height and turned off the classical music.

“The point of the symbol itself serves as a huge warning to society,” Nines stated as he stared down at Gavin in a dominant way that said: “I know everything, and you don’t, so fuck you!”

Ignoring the vicious scowls Gavin was giving him, Nines glowered at him while he spoke on, “Ouroboros aren’t afraid of death, Detective Reed; they fully believe in their own powers and abilities, and they feel they’re immortal. They feel their purpose and work won’t ever end on the planet, and they will feed into their own destruction and malice until they grow stronger and stronger.”

He leaned into Gavin, a ghost of a smirk on his lips, “See, they enjoy failure; it gives them the perfect opportunity to rise above everything and learn from their mistakes.”

Oookaaaayyy…point taken.

Leaning away from Nines, Gavin brushed himself off with a steady hand. “Okay, I got it, Nines, no need to be such a creep!”

Nines quirked an eyebrow as he clasped his hands behind his back. “Oh really, Detective? I have a hard time believing that…”

“You doubt me?”

“Yes.”

Gavin froze for a moment, then spat out, “Well you’re just a bitch, that’s why.”

Nines hummed, a disgruntled expression on his face in an instant. “Detective Reed, you should try to figure out the real purpose behind any violent act a gang carries out; sometimes, it’s not just about the fame or money, you know.”

Feeling his stomach about to rumble, Gavin pressed a hand down against it, as if to silence it before it growled at him. “That a fact?”

Nines nodded, “Indeed, keep that in mind, and in the time being, I suggest that you—”

Beeeeeeeeep! Beeeeeeeeep! Boooooooooop! Beeeeeeeeep!!!!!!

Gavin’s eyes widened at the strange noises that seemed to be coming from beneath his feet. He peered down, and he had to leap back a little when he saw a little silvery-colored circular machine with a green light in its back. It resembled a tiny cat or a dog, and it had two legs that held and supported its round body up. A large, bulbous head was atop a thin neck, and a little appendage much like a tail flicked out from its back, though it was likely an antenna of sorts. It had a little slit in the head that Gavin supposed could’ve been an eye, but it also could have been a camera or a scanner as well. It was a narrow, vertical slit that was barely visible, but it was there nonetheless.

Gavin pointed down at the strange machine as it hovered a few feet into the air, but never came up any higher than Gavin’s kneecaps.

“The fuck is that?!?”

Nines looked down at the machine for a split second before he straightened himself out and huffed. “Ah, that would be the ‘Nano-Bot’. One of the latest and greatest inventions, courtesy of Elijah Kamski.”

Gavin gasped, “I’ve never seen one of these damn things before!!”

“That would be because it’s still in its earliest designs.”

Gavin raised an inquisitive eyebrow, “So what’s it doin’ in your home, then?”

“It was a gift given to me by Mr. Kamski.”

Rolling his eyes, Gavin let out a dry laugh, “What? Does the guy have dinners with you or some shit, like, as if you guys are friends?”

Bleeeep! Bleeeep!

Nines was silent before he nodded slowly, “Mr. Kamski and I have been keeping regular company for a while now, Detective Reed…not that it’s any of your business.”

Wow.

So not only did Nines have the job Gavin wanted, the mansion he should have had, the decorations and items he’d wanted, but now he was telling Gavin that he was best friends with Elijah Kamski?!?!?!

Gavin had found another reason to hate Nines even more, especially now that he knew the android hung out with Elijah Kamski on a regular basis.

Bleeeeeeeep!

“Good. Evening. Detective. Reed. How. May. I. Assist. You?”

Gavin looked down at the Nano-Bot as it spoke up at him in an incredibly monotone, female voice. Afterwards, a little gleam of light poured out from the center of its ‘head’, and it whirred and purred as it rose a little higher while spinning a circle. Eventually, it descended a little, and its tail flickered once before tucking itself back in a little square compartment on its back Gavin hadn’t noticed before.

Gavin was shocked again. “It talks?!?”

Nines hummed, “It’s a part of its programming.”

“What does it do??”

“It’s meant to assist you, Detective Reed,” Nines stated blandly, as if he had already explained this concept over a hundred times before. “It can carry out any task you give it.”

Gavin nodded, an impressed expression on his face. “I like it!”

“Indeed.”

He looked over at Nines, “What do you call it?”

“I beg your pardon?”

Gavin snickered, “It’s a girl, obviously, does she have a name?”

Nines sputtered, for once looking so lost and delirious as he stared up and down at Gavin in confusion.

“I…I don’t…” he shook his head, “it’s a machine, Detective; it doesn’t need a name.”

Gavin snorted, “So? You’re a machine, and yet you have a name!”

This made Nines turn almost into a statue. His eyes glazed over, and for a while, he stood rigid and firm as he stared at Gavin without blinking for almost three minutes. Gavin was certain he’d pissed Nines off, and he winced as he looked down and sighed.

“Sorry…I didn’t mean it like that, I just—”

Nines brushed past him, “You may name her, if you wish, seeing as you’re so keen on it.”

Gavin watched him walk towards the door of the drawing room, and he called out, “H-hey! Where are you goin’?”

Without looking back at him, Nines hissed thinly, “I’m off to retire for the night, if it’s alright with you, Detective Reed. I bid you goodnight.”

Before Gavin could say anything else to him, Nines disappeared, leaving Gavin all alone with the little Nano-Bot that was still hovering and whirring around his knees, possibly waiting to receive instructions.

Gavin smiled down at it while he stuffed his hands in his pockets. “Hey you!” he chuckled, “you’re kinda cute, aren’t ya?”

Boooooooop!

“Detective. What. Can. I. Assist. You. With?”

Gavin bent down and took a closer look at the Nano-Bot for a long time before he chuckled again and tilted his head at it.

“You know what? I’d like to give you a name!” he announced proudly to the little machine, and he watched its ‘eye’ flicker a little blue light.

Gavin gasped, “Can I name you?”

The machine let out a slow beep before the feminine voice spoke out: “Permission. Granted. Proceed.”

Gavin lowered his voice to a whisper, as if sharing a secret he only wanted to keep between himself and little Nano-Bot.

“I think I’ll call you Shelley, from now on.”

Beeeeeeeeeeep!

“Name. Registered. Current. Name. Shelley!”

Gavin could’ve sworn that Shelley sounded excited as her eye turned to a baby blue color. Maybe it wasn’t going to be so bad here after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shelley is one of the cutest things EVER. If I could draw, I'd draw her ASAP for the fic, my mans.


	4. Pre-Wedding Jitters

Captain Fowler jumped a mile in the air when his office phone rang. It had been silent for nearly an hour-just an hour-but then it had to ring. He’d celebrated a bit too early with the idea that he could be able to go home a little ahead of time today, but then the phone just _had_ to ring…always a catch to having a nice day.

Sighing tiredly, he sat back down, a light spring jacket still on as the weather was slightly chilly and windy that day.

“Fowler’s office,” he spoke quickly, staring at his watch as he began already counting down the minutes.

“Captain Fowler,” Nines’ voice came on the other end of the line, “I trust you’re well?”

Fowler smiled as he leaned back in his chair, “Ahh, hey Nines,” he greeted politely as he stared at a picture of his family’s large garden hanging up across his desk on a wall, “thanks for calling me.”

“No thanking is necessary, Captain,” Nines drawled on, “I’m merely checking in with you as you requested of me.”

Fowler nodded as he scratched at his shins below his desk, “Yes Nines, I was wondering how Gavin’s doing?”

There was a slight pause on the other end of the line, and Captain Fowler had to look at the phone for a moment, wondering if it had somehow disconnected or malfunctioned then.

“Nines?”

“Yes Sir,” the android softly answered, “Detective Reed is now cohabiting with me in my home, as you know.”

“Splendid! How are you two getting along?” Fowler somehow knew what the answer to this question was going to be, but he still felt he had to ask, more so out of curiosity’s sake. It wasn’t that he was interested in relationship drama…no…not at all; he just wanted to check in on Gavin and Nines!! Yes…that was it for sure.

He heard Nines sighing before he quickly pushed out, “He’s impossible and utterly difficult to deal with as always, Sir.”

Fowler threw his head back and laughed a small bark of a laugh. When he realized Nines hadn’t joined in, he cleared his throat and tried containing himself.

“I apologize for that, Nines.”

“No need, Captain.”

Fowler could practically see the scowl on the RK900’s face right now.

Clearing his throat to keep from coughing, he moved onto another topic. “So,” he began, “the wedding…”

“Indeed.”

“I was just informed that because of a recent incident involving a business owner having some connections and ties with Ouroboros, anyone could be watching Gavin at this point.”

It seemed as though Nines had already caught on. “You want us to have a formal wedding ceremony.”

Smart android.

Fowler nodded again, “I’m afraid so, Nines. It’s the only way the wedding would seem legitimate, and again, we don’t know who is a part of Ouroboros, and who their messengers and eyes are at this point.”

Nines hated that he had to agree, and he merely sighed and shifted before he ground out impatiently, “Very well, Captain.”

“Nines, please,” Fowler pleaded gently, “this is the best way we can even find a leader of the gang…it could be the priest who marries you and Gavin, for all we know!” He followed this up with another short laugh, but Nines shifted again before sighing a long sigh.

“As you wish, Captain.”

“Appreciate it, Nines,” Fowler stood up, gathering his belongings and his car key as he prepared to exit for the day, finally. He was a lot more exhausted than he originally thought, but it was so strange that he hadn’t noticed it throughout the day. He tossed that off to how crazy busy it had gotten, so much that he had no time to even understand the signals his body was giving him.

He breathed out, “I’m getting too old for this shit.”

Nines paused for a moment, then cleared his throat. “I’m sorry, Captain, was that meant for me?”

Fowler nearly slapped himself. He really _was_ getting old and senile if he wasn’t able to differentiate between an internal thought and voicing his thoughts out loud.

He tapped a hand against his forehead, as though he was trying to ‘beat’ the lesson into his head. “No Nines, forget I said that, please.”

“Hmm…as you wish, Sir. The ceremony is still tomorrow?”

“Sure is.”

“Very well, good day, Captain.”

He paused, “Oh! Nines?” Hoping Nines hadn’t already ended the call, Captain Fowler cried out for him again.

“I’m still here, Captain.”

He smiled, “I know you’re not fond of Gavin, but please try to be patient with him and understand him as well you’re able to, okay?”

Again, it was silent for a while, and then Nines simply said, “I’m afraid I have to go, Captain. See you at the ceremony tomorrow.”

Captain Fowler breathed out gently, holding up a small, rectangular picture frame on his desk.

“Take care, Nines.”

As the call disconnected, he studied the photograph of his family for an unknown period of time. It was a photo that had been taken barely a year ago, but it still held plenty of wonderful, happy memories still to this day. His wife and children were smiling brightly and widely, and he himself was on top of the world on that day…he set the photograph down as he shook his head and muttered to himself.

He only left when his feet ached from standing up for so long.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin was munching on an apple when he nearly collided into Nines when he’d tried exiting the kitchen. He gasped as he leapt up and suddenly dropped the apple. Quick as a flash, Nines used his inhuman reflexes to snatch up the apple before it rolled onto the floor.

Glaring down heatedly at Gavin, he held up the apple that had just recently been bitten into. His eyes curved and swam over the teeth indentations in the skin of the apple. As Nines studied the fruit, he saw the juices flowing from the bite in the middle of it. Still, the apple was crisp, fresh, and it was lovely.

Gavin grunted as he stared down awkwardly at the floor, “Ummm, can I have my apple back, Nines?”

Nines tossed it back at him wordlessly. This time, Gavin caught it in one hand, and he nodded as he bit into it again.

Turning away from him, Nines exited the kitchen through the left-side, and was trying to make his way into his office, when he heard Gavin crunching and munching on the apple. He was closely following him, and Nines peered at him over his shoulder.

Gavin’s cheeks puffed out, giving him the appearance of a chipmunk or a squirrel storing food in its mouth.

He waved at Nines and spoke while his mouth was full, “Hey.”

Nines scoffed at him, “You’re a messy eater.”

This drew a frown out of Gavin, but he wiped his apple-stained lips with the sleeve of his sweater. Nines scowled even harder at him for it, and then turned around to open the double doors leading to his office adjacent to the large kitchen.

“Were you talkin’ to Fowler earlier?” Gavin asked at his back, and as Nines moved about, the motion detection kicked up, making the lights in the office turn on immediately.

He glared at Gavin as he pulled out his chair neatly tucked into his desk, “That’s ‘Captain Fowler’ to you, Detective Reed!”

Gavin’s eyes widened a little, and he held up the apple high in the air, “Woah, woah, no need to snap at me, Nines!”

Nines practically slammed the chair down on the floor as he set himself down on it. “And furthermore,” he began in a haughty tone of voice, “it’s none of your business if I’m talking to Captain Fowler, or anyone else!!”

Gavin snapped back, “Yes it fuckin’ is!!”

Nines was about to explode, but he closed his eyes, LED light red as he felt patience slowly slipping out of him like water springing from leak in a boat in the middle of the ocean.

“I said it’s not your concern, Detective Reed.” How he had kept calm through all that was beyond him, but he made a mental note to have a little chat with Captain Fowler about an increase or bonus in his salary-just for having the patience to deal with Detective Reed.

Gripping his apple tightly, Gavin soon turned redder than the fruit he had been eating.

“It _is_ my fuckin’ concern, Nines!!”

Raising his own voice, Nines shouted back, “How do you figure that?!”

Gavin waved around the room, spinning in a half-circle, as if the answer had been floating around in the room the entire time. “In case you’re not realizing it, we’re _engaged_ , Nines!” Gavin spat with venom as his shoulders tightened and clenched up, “we’re about to be _married_ , and that means that like it or not, I’m a part of your life!!”

“It’s a fake marriage, Detective,” Nines jeered at him, “we’re not partners at all, no matter whether we’re having a legitimate ceremony or otherwise.”

Gavin froze, and Nines internally punched himself in the face. He didn’t understand how he’d accidentally made the first bumble in his entire creation: telling Gavin about the news Captain Fowler had passed on to him. This was by far the first time Nines caught himself making the error a child normally would have, and he fumed as his eyes narrowed at Gavin. It was his fault!!

Gavin gasped, “Did Fowler say we’re having a real ceremony?!”

There was no use in denying it now. Best to get it over with by answering all the questions that were to be thrown at him-as idiotic as they were-so he could be gifted with peace and silence sooner.

Nines nodded, “Yes, it appears as if this is as ‘real’ of a show as it gets.”

Gavin set his apple down on top of the head of a dragon statue leaning against the wall behind him. Nines scowled at it in response, but he had bigger problems to deal with for the time being.

“I can’t fuckin’ believe it,” Gavin threw his hands up into the air dramatically, “what next? Rings and a priest to wed us?”

Nines didn’t say anything, and Gavin picked up on the hint. He let out a horrifying cry of terror.

Ignoring him, Nines ground out, “Finish that apple.”

“I can’t eat my apple, now!” Gavin grumbled childishly, almost, “my appetite’s all gone!”

“I don’t care,” Nines fumed angrily, “get rid of it. You’re making a mess everywhere!”

Placing a hand on his hip, Gavin spat down at him, “Well excuse the fuck out of me, your Royal Highness, but I hardly think a small apple could really be considered a mess!”

Nines didn’t want to argue. He stood up, and Gavin cowered for a moment, as if fearful that the tall android would hit him. Instead, Nines threw his head back and called out, “Nano-Bot! Assistance required immediately!!”

Bleeeeeeeeep!!!!!!!! Bloooooooooop!!!!!!!! Bleeeeeeeep!

At once, Shelley flew in the room, hovering above their ankles gracefully as she spun around and waited in front of Nines.

Nines nodded in the direction of the apple and then pointed at it, “Get rid of that.”

“Request. Processed. Cleansing. Beginning!”

Immediately, Shelley then floated over towards the dragon statue, and as Gavin watched in awe, her ‘tail’ snapped out of her back, and flew above her round head. Flicking forward gracefully, it wrapped around the apple, much like a rope would, and she snatched the apple close to her before her tail let out a ‘shink!’ Little barbed wires and studs burst forth from her tail, then, and as Shelley spun her tail around rapidly, the apple was sliced and diced into a couple of hundred tiny pieces. Each and every piece was then collected in the small square compartment in Shelley’s back that opened up like a pocket, and then the compartment closed, her tail withdrew back inside her body, and the single ‘eye’ on her head blinked bright blue before she hovered back over to Nines.

“Task. Complete. RK900. How. Else. May. I. Assist. You?”

Nines didn’t even look down at her as he spoke out, “Empty that in the compost bin, and that will be all.”

Gavin scoffed at Nines as Shelley whirred and flew out of the room to complete her new task.

Nines met his eyes with a heated glare, “Is there a problem, Detective?”

“Why’re you treating her like that?”

He tilted his head at Gavin curiously, “Like what?”

Gavin waved his hand in the direction Shelley had disappeared in, “Like a...a…you know! Like a…” he couldn’t bring himself to say it, but Nines was more than eager to finish the statement for him.

He leaned into Gavin as he held a cold grin on his face that oozed nothing but sarcasm. “You mean to say like a machine?”

_“You bastard…”_

He held his head down and stayed silent. Now wasn’t the time to argue, and he really had no idea what else to even retort back. Gavin didn’t want to admit that Nines was right, but the damn android was right, as always!!! Gavin hated that! He hated not being able to look someone in the eyes and tell them that they were an asshole he loathed! He had no issues doing it before! What was the big deal now??

But he couldn’t do it.

Nines smirked as he clasped his hands behind his back and stood to the side, eyes on the door the entire time.

“If you’ll excuse me, Detective Reed,” he emphasized the words ‘excuse me’, “I have a lot of regrouping to do before I update my team on more information I’ve accrued about Slo-Freeze and Ouroboros.”

Gavin rolled his eyes, feet already making their way to the door. “Yeah, yeah, yeah,” he groaned out impatiently, “I heard ya the first time, Nines.”

Grabbing the side of the door, he began closing it gently after himself.

“I’m gone.”

Before he closed the door completely, he did not miss the nasty sneer Nines threw his way for a moment before sitting down at his desk.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

After two rings, Gavin let out a sigh of relief when Connor answered his call.

“Gavin?” the excited voice hit his ears like a drumstick, and Gavin pressed himself down onto his bed as soon as he’d closed his bedroom door.

“Hey Connor,” he breathed out in a soft sigh as he kicked his feet up and rested them up along one of the posters of the bed, “how’s it going?”

Connor hummed before giggling, “I think I should be the one asking _you_ that, right Gavin?”

It was true; Connor wasn’t the one engaged to a monster, after all. Still, it didn’t help that Gavin wasn’t entirely prepared to disclose how he felt about Nines treating him. The childish side of him only wanted to make Nines look bad, and the best way Gavin thought he could do so was by using an age-old technique: Gossip.

Still, there was something wrong and something that went against Gavin’s morals to try and use Connor’s innocence towards his own benefit. After all, Connor was one of his closest friends and was quite supportive through everything Gavin had been going through lately. Using him was just plain wrong, but Gavin shook it off as he rearranged his thinking style…at least temporarily.

Smirking up at the top of the bed while balancing his phone between his shoulder and jaw, he sighed out, “I’m not sure what to do, Connor,” he picked at his skin, “I heard that this wedding ceremony is legit!”

Now he was really putting his ‘detective skills’ to work. By saying this out loud to Connor and broaching the subject, he felt had a good chance of pulling in more information about the accuracy of the ceremony. Originally, Gavin had assumed that Nines had pulled it right out of his ass when he claimed that Fowler had stated it was going to be legitimate and proper. He’d wanted to call the RK900 on his bluff, but Nines had practically shooed him out of his office way too soon. Dealing with the RK800 was a lot better and easier, as Connor was a lot closer and on friendlier terms with Gavin, clearly.

After having heard what he’d said, it was silent on the other end of the line for many long minutes from Connor. Gavin was losing patience not hearing anything, but he brushed it all aside, counted to three, closed his eyes, and forcefully made his tone into a sweet one-though not too sweet so Connor wouldn’t catch on that Gavin was playing him.

“Connor?” he beckoned softly, “are you there?”

“I’m here, Gavin,” Connor answered, and then paused for another minute before he said, “I’m just…I’m speechless…”

Gavin’s eyes opened, “You are?”

“Of course I am!” Connor all but exploded, “no one ever told me that at all!”

_“Aha!! Got you now, Fowler, you bastard!!”_

Keeping his triumph at bay, Gavin put on a phony groan of despair. “This is serious, Connor! There’s going to be a priest and everything to make it official!”

Connor was silent again for a moment before he giggled playfully, “Do you think I’ll get to be a ‘best man’, or a ‘bridesmaid’?”

Frowning at the phone in his hands, Gavin sat up and kicked at the bed, “Don’t be ridiculous, Connor,” he spat as he threw a look at himself in the mirror that was so horrible and dark that he looked away in fear.

_“Do I always look this menacing??? Sheesh!”_

“Sorry,” Connor apologized before clearing his throat, “I think Hank and I may have to be witnesses, but the rest should be a basic marriage, I think!”

Gavin massaged his temples. “Connor.”

“Did you get a ring yet?” Connor pressed out excitedly, “I bet you must have a ring!”

Gavin stood up, making his way across his large bedroom slowly, “No Connor, I’m sorry to disappoint you, but I don’t have a ring, buddy.” He stopped only when he was before the dresser, and he looked up into the huge mirror and studied the dark circles under his eyes.

_“Oh my, do I ever look like garbage…”_

As if somehow hearing his thoughts, Connor cried out, “Don’t worry, Gavin! I’m sure you will be fine and look even nicer than you think!”

Damn androids and their weird, creepy powers.

Gavin ran a hand through his hair. “You think so, Connor?”

“I know so!”

_“At least I don’t have grey hairs, yet!”_

He dropped his hand by his side, “I still feel so fucked up, Connor,” he explained as he turned his head around and looked at his hair and the back of his neck, not really sure what he was looking for exactly.

“It’s natural to feel that way, Gavin,” Connor interrupted while speaking a little hurriedly, almost as if someone on the other end of the line was telling him to end the call quickly.

Gavin shook his head, even though Connor couldn’t see it on the other end of the phone, “It’s not natural at all, Connor,” he sighed wearily once he’d had enough of studying himself in the mirror and turned away.

“…nothing about this damn situation is ‘normal’.”

Connor sighed also, but his tone was genuine and very soft. It almost put Gavin to sleep as he stood back and listened.

“I meant that it’s natural with the wedding and all that, Gavin…consider these feelings and worries you’re having as pre-wedding jitters!”

Snickering a little, Gavin wiped his eyes, “Pre-wedding jitters? I’ve never heard of that before!”

“It happens all the time, I bet! Most people just don’t want to admit it, that’s all!”

A smile was instantly on his face, and Gavin soon forgot about Nines, his shitty attitude, and the upcoming wedding ceremony in the negative sense. Connor had really cheered him up, after all, without really having to try hard. It was hardly a question as to why he kept Connor around as a friend…

“Thanks Connor,” he walked back to his bed and sat down on the edge of it, feeling younger than he had in years in spirit.

“Don’t mention it, Gavin!” Connor gleefully cheered, “Hank and I will always be here for you, and if you ever want to talk, just reach out without hesitation!”

Gavin chuckled warmly, “You bet, Connor.”

Sensing his friend had someplace else to be, Gavin bid him farewell, and he leaned back on his bed. He’d barely closed his eyes when his bedroom door creaked open.

Sitting up abruptly, Gavin gasped out in fear, “Who’s there?!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Connor's a very good friend! But I think Gavin's feeling waaay more than pre-wedding jitters, Connor!!!  
> He is gonna have a REAL ceremony! YIIIKES! 👀👀👀👀😲


	5. Midnight Margaritas

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Incoming silliness and tea ;)

Gavin groaned when he saw the little blue light blinking once. He leaned down as he studied the little menace that had nearly made him leap out of his skin.

“Shelley!!” he cried out in pain and relief simultaneously, “you scared the shit out of me!!”

The little Nano-Bot moved in a hurry as she turned her round, bulbous head and almost peered up at Gavin while her two little legs tucked slightly up into her body.

“May. I. Assist. You?”

Gavin smiled down at her, “If you can somehow delay this damn wedding, it’d be lovely, Shelley!”

It sounded so weird and strange saying it out loud. After all, what could a little Nano-Bot programmed to please her owners really say and do? Could she console him? Nope. He tossed it off to just being nervous, angry with the fact that he was stuck and forced into this hellhole, and beyond pissed with the fact that Nines was a snooty jerkwad. There was no reason otherwise to want to vent to Shelley, right?

Her light turned deep orange, much like a traffic signal before it switched to blue again while she scanned Gavin and processed his words.

Booooooop! “Error. Error. Unable. To. Process. Request. Error. May. I. Assist. You. With. Another. Request?”

Gavin hummed, feeling his stomach still kind of empty, and his mouth was kind of dry…almost in the sense that he was thirsty for something delicious...

His eyes fell to the digital clock resting on his dresser, and it was almost midnight. He grinned, knowing then exactly what he wanted to do-what else he could really enjoy at this hour of the night.

That damn apple hadn’t been nearly enough to satiate his hunger, and he knew he definitely needed something stronger! Looking down at Shelley, he smirked with a little idea brewing in his head.

“Shelley, can you whip up a hell of a margarita by any chance?”

She practically purred, and her legs stuck out immediately, like the flash of a sharp blade slicing through the air.

“Request. Computed!”

Gavin grinned in triumph, feeling energy shooting through him like an electric shock.

“That’s a girl!” he was so very eager to get started, and he led the way.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin hoisted the blender out of the top shelf of the highest and most out of reach cupboard in the huge kitchen. Placing it down on the counter gently, Gavin peeked at the door down towards the left. Nines was still in his office working. Perfect!

Next, Gavin got out a cocktail glass and set it aside while Shelley whirred and buzzed around him excitedly.

It took Gavin nearly ten minutes to find where a strainer was, but he fished one out of a drawer close to the fridge, and he held it up high in his hands as he cried out happily.

“Hallelujah, baby!!”

Gavin got to work, looking around in the fridge for limes, salt, ice cubes (which he found in the freezer in a jiffy), and then he paced over towards a large cabinet on the far right-hand corner of the kitchen by the table.

Turning on the lights in that portion of the kitchen, Gavin gasped in glee and joy when he saw a huge liquor cabinet. He was certain there had to be plenty more-perhaps in a cellar or basement-but the fancy ones on display right on the surface of the cabinet were a beauty. Gavin admired them as he let out a low whistle, and eventually grabbed a bottle of tequila, which he held up high in the air and waved around Shelley’s head like a baton during a parade.

“This is the real magic, girl, I tell ya!!”

Shelley only tilted her head a little, but then got to work by scanning and processing when Gavin grabbed the fresh, cool limes he’d pulled out of the fridge and placed the limes down on the floor by her in a little plate.

“Slice it right up, please, and be careful!!”

Beeeep! Booop! “Task. Computed. Slicing. Citrus. Fruit.”

As Shelley got to work, Gavin popped open the bottle of tequila, but stopped first to take a good, long whiff of it now that it was open before him. Just smelling it alone sent a great, wonderful buzz down his body right to his toes…it’d been so long!! Now that he’d had a little taste, he quickly poured it into the mixer. Next, he dumped in at least four ice-cubes, followed by a pinch of salt. Grinning from ear-to-ear, he looked around for the power cord, only to see it didn’t need one.

_“State of the art!!”_

“Perfect!!”

Pressing the power button, Gavin waited for the magic to happen, but he unfortunately didn’t know that he hadn’t placed the top lid of the blender on completely and properly. At once, the blender began vibrating terribly as it bounced on the counter, and while Gavin turned around to retrieve triple sec and limeade concentrate, the contents already inside the blender exploded all over the walls and counter of the kitchen.

“HOLY SHIT! HOLY SHIT!!!”

Gavin leapt forward, trying to grab a hold of the blender whilst reaching inside a drawer for a napkin or some paper towels. In his haste and panic, he hadn’t seen that they were already in a paper-towel roll by the toaster.

“FUCK!!!”

Shelley even began panicking in her own robotic way; her legs tucked in and out of her little body, and her head spun as she circled Gavin’s legs with an orange light blinking rapidly.

“Error! Error! Danger! Danger! DANGER!!!” her voice grew louder and more unstable, as if she too was worried beyond belief in her own special way.

Before more of a mess was made, Gavin saw two long hands reaching forward, and immediately, an index finger slammed down on the power button while the other hand pressed down on the back of the blender and kept it in place.

The blender turned off at once, and Gavin let out a sigh of relief as he lowered the hands he’d pressed up against his face to shield himself from being sprayed in the face by alcohol and ice-water.

However, when he’d brushed himself off and looked up, he nearly collapsed in fear.

Nines was standing tall, and he removed his hands from the blender, and crossed them over his arms. Not a single drop of the mess Gavin made had been splashed on his clothing, however.

_“Damn it, perhaps this thing isn’t as useful as I thought if he’s entirely spotless after having stood right before it!”_

Gavin didn’t have much time to think or talk, however. Nines practically exploded as he stood around the counter and got in Gavin’s face rudely and boldly.

“Just what the hell do you think you’re doing to my kitchen, Detective?!?”

Gavin blinked once, a few drops of tequila dripping down from the tip of his nose as he pointed at Shelley with eyes as wide as dinner plates. “It was her idea.”

She merely responded by floating around him, her light almost a reddish hue, now. Beeep!!!! “Deception. Deception. Error. Error!”

Nines sighed angrily as he made his way over to grab a few paper towels. He bunched them into his hands as he scrubbed away at the rim of the blender first, and then the length of it gently and slowly, as if he was handling fine China instead of a plastic blender.

“When I’m through with cleaning this,” Nines began in a huff, “I would like for you to clean up your own mess, Detective Reed.”

Gavin gaped, and then stammered, ears and cheeks growing pink and heated, “But y-you said I could u-use the items in here for preparing food and stuff for myself!!”

A red LED light was all Gavin saw for a moment, and his eyes began to burn. Stubbornly, he refused to blink or wipe his eyes. If it was a glaring and scowling contest Nines wanted, then that was what he was going to get!

Nines barely kept the low growl out of his voice, “And pray tell,” he sniffed sharply as he scoffed at Gavin’s appearance, “what kind of beverage were you hoping to ‘prepare’ to go along with your ‘food and stuff’?”

Gavin glowered at him, hands already tightening up into fists.

_“You bastard!”_

Nines raised an eyebrow, “Well?”

“Midnight Margaritas…”

Nines leaned down a little, ear facing Gavin, “What was that?”

Gavin sighed, “I said, I was making midnight margaritas.” Nines wasn’t fucking deaf, and they both knew it. He had only asked Gavin to repeat himself so he could mock the human, and that was it. Gavin hated Nines even more for this, and he knew that there was no way he could ‘prepare’ and brace himself for the future if this was how bitchy Nines got over a fucking drink spilling a little…a lot…all over the fucking walls, and ceiling, and wedged in the pot lights somehow…okay how the hell did some of it land in the inside of a pot dangling beside its brethren from the pot and pan rack??

Nines pushed open a garbage can lid by pressing on a foot pedal that made the lid bounce up, and he dumped the wet paper towels inside it.

“Detective Reed,” he turned to face Gavin, and brushed the loose strand of dark brown hair that always fell over his forehead back, “is this really how you spend your time working on solving major criminal investigations?”

_“Another low insult masked in a question? Pathetic, Nines, real damn pathetic.”_

Stubbornly, Gavin shrugged, “I don’t have to answer to you.”

Nines groused, “It’s not me you need to answer to; but the entire population of Detroit. I wonder how they can all sleep properly at nights knowing that one of the world’s most inept Detectives is trying to save their lives.” Nines finished this with a sneer that cut Gavin in the worst possible way.

He wanted to at least get a word or two in, and he puffed out his chest as he stood closer to Nines. “Well this so-called ‘inept Detective’ somehow made it on your narcotics team, you arrogant swine!!”

Nines shook his head, “You barely managed to do so, but were successful only because Captain Fowler holds a soft spot for you, Detective…” he tilted his head at Gavin, eyes set in slits, “…you can call it a weakness, perhaps, but it was only by his word and signature on a document that got your application and recommendation through.”

Gavin stepped back, nearly slipping over a patch of wetness on the shiny floors that had once been clean.

“Fuck you,” he spat at his fiancé, “just fuck you.” What else was there to say, really? Nines just knew how to get to him, and he was a master at insults without having even once resorted to a curse word. Gavin knew he’d failed, and he wanted to at least sulk off with some dignity left…if Nines would allow him that, even.

It was probably just better to get to work and wipe down the entire kitchen (and the walls and ceilings) and then head off to bed instead of arguing or staring down the tall RK900, but he was just so…so infuriating!! The way he sneered at Gavin practically _begged_ for more confrontation! It wasn’t Gavin’s fault!

As Gavin turned around to grab a sponge, paper towels, and possibly bleach, Nines hissed out coldly, “Instead of preparing ‘midnight margaritas’, perhaps you should stick to what you do best, Detective Reed…”

The way his voice just trailed off at the end naturally peaked Gavin’s curiosity, though he knew Nines had stated and presented his speech on purpose with that kind of a tone and lure in his voice. Nines wanted Gavin to give in to the chase of finding out what it was he was sneakily and impishly implying, and Gavin sadly fell for it by giving Nines the attention he didn’t deserve right now…or ever, for that matter.

Gavin looked up at him, eyebrows raised slightly and expectantly.

He was met with a cold sneer.

“What you do best is live your life out as a shadow, Detective Reed.” There was practically a purr to Nines’ voice, but it wasn’t a friendly or warm one; it was downright cruel and menacing. Gavin could confirm this as he turned and stared at Nines.

The android had a very hurtful facial expression on, and it seemed to really portray just how much pleasure he gained from Gavin’s suffering and torment.

_“Why do you hate me so fucking much?!?! What did I ever do to you?!?”_

Unfortunately, Gavin couldn’t voice these thoughts aloud, and he merely held his head down as he bent down beneath the sink and collected whatever cleaning supplies he could. The entire time, he felt Nines’ piercing blue eyes spear through the back of his head, and he tried ignoring it while Shelley spun around, as if observing both of them.

Nines looked down at her, and he tapped his hand against the outside of his left thigh.

“Nano-Bot,” he barked out, and Shelley straightened up as her head tilted over to him, “your assistance is required in my office.”

Booooooop!!! Beeeeeeeeep!!!

“Request. Confirmed. Task. Computed.”

Turning swiftly on his heels, Nines stalked off back to his office, with Shelley floating and moving closely behind him. She was still covered in some water and ice, but she shook herself like a little dog before Nines slammed the door on Gavin.

He was once again left all alone, and he had a huge mess to clean that would more than likely take all night.

Great.

This time, the nervous pangs he felt deep in his chest and stomach definitely weren’t pre-wedding jitters; they were feelings of abhorrence and disgust over his situation, his future, and regarding the words Nines had said to him.

Gavin thought of them all night.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin had slept like a baby that night. How could he not when the bedroom, the furniture, and the house had been so quiet and so damn perfect??

Not even so much as a ‘peep’ went through the house, and by the time Gavin had finished cleaning the mess he’d made in the kitchen, he was practically sleepwalking up the steps all the way until he reached his own bedroom.

His body worked on autopilot, and it knew where the bathroom was. He washed his hands, brushed his teeth, and gave his face a pat-down before he climbed onto the large bed. It was the most comfortable one Gavin had ever slept in, and the moment he fell into the mattress, it held him and seemed to even rock him, as if he were a newborn infant being held in his mother’s comforting and soothing arms while she sang him a lullaby.

Before he completely dozed off, Gavin had to really enjoy the peace and silence the enormous house had to offer. As he sighed in content and looked around in the dark for a moment, he wondered just where Nines ‘slept’. Was his room just as comfortable and lovely as Gavin’s was?

After a moment of wondering this to himself, Gavin almost slapped himself for wondering what Nines was doing in the middle of the night. He didn’t give a shit either way about his rude, bossy fiancé, and he supposed it was just his mind being so damn exhausted that it’d forced a weird thought into his head he’d never normally entertain.

This idea comforted him for a moment, and then he was fast asleep.

Morning couldn’t have arrived any sooner, but when it had, Gavin still felt horribly nervous. He’d had one of the best good night rests in a long, long time, as the mattress in his bedroom proved to be very thick, soft, and snuggled around the body in all the right places. The pillows fluffed up nicely, and as soon as Gavin had placed his head on one of them, a lovely odor much like lilac rose into the air, clouding around his head as he was lulled into a peaceful dreamland…only to have that all shattered and taken away from him when someone rudely walked into the bedroom and woke him up.

It had been a very bad way to have woken up, as well.

The door banged open, slamming against the wall, and that was the initial shock delivered to Gavin. The poor man reared up, bunching his sheets up in a hand tightly, and he gasped out as he choked for air like he’d been drowning.

Next, the curtains in the room had been yanked open aggressively, and sunlight blasted and flooded into the room, and directly into Gavin’s retinas. He shrieked as he held a hand up to shield himself.

“The fuck?!?”

Something swept over to him like a ghost, and when Gavin’s vision was a little more settled and accustomed to the bright morning light, he saw that Nines was glaring down at him while standing by the side of his bed.

Gavin yelped and pulled up the sheets, under the impression that he’d slept in the nude as he often would, but when he peered down at himself, he saw that that wasn’t the case. He was wearing the same navy-blue shorts and t-shirt this morning as he had put on before bed.

Thank god!

_“I’m so glad I decided to grow a brain and not act like I normally would in my own home!”_

Now that that mess had been sorted out, Gavin glared back at his fiancé. “The fuck do you want wakin’ me up so god damn early in the morning, Nines??!”

The android tsked as he shook his head lightly at Gavin, “Good to know that the first words out of your mouth first thing in the morning are expletives, Detective.”  

“Oh yeah?” Gavin snarled, already in a grumpy mood from being rudely awakened, “well it’s good to know that you’re gonna walk around and wake me up bright and early first thing by gifting me with a fucking heart attack!”

What a prospect to look forward to, indeed.

Nines shrugged as he rolled up the sleeves of his black, long-sleeve casual-fit cotton shirt. “I don’t really have a preference in particular for how you choose to spend your time here, Detective,” he stated as if he were bored out of his mind while his eyes seemed to harshly judge and scold Gavin the entire time.

“…you can lie here in bed from dawn until dusk for all I care, but for today…” his eyes flickered dangerously, “…you’re going to get up and prepare for the ceremony.”

Gavin groaned, head plopping back down to his pillows, “But the ceremony’s not gonna be happenin’ first thing in the morning!!!”

“It matters not,” Nines hissed at him while kicking aside one of Gavin’s discarded shirts that had somehow gotten on the deerskin rug, “what matters is that we have a lot to prepare for, and I’m not going to come back a second time and tug you out of bed!”

Sitting up, Gavin rolled his eyes as he wheezed out, “I thought you weren’t going to dote on me, Nines?”

Gripping the door handle tightly in a hand, Nines snarled at him while a dark expression fell onto his face. It made Gavin sink back into the mattress, but he swallowed down his fear and returned Nines’ scowls.

“Don’t misunderstand me, Detective Reed,” Nines stated in a clear warning at the edge of his words, playing softly like a death knell, “this is the first _and_ last time you’ll receive such treatment from me.”

Halfway out the door, he spat out, “From tonight on, you’re on your own, and what you do is your own damn business, as always.”

The door slammed once again.

Nothing had changed, and nothing ever would change.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Gavin, Nines is way too hard on him, my mans! And not HARD in the kinky good way ;) hahahaha STOP 👀👀


	6. Author Note

Yelloooo all!

I just wanted to take some time to thank everyone who is reading and enjoying this fic! You guys are so sweet and wonderful, and your time is so appreciated to me! I know I will keep on delivering and posting amazing and fun chapters for you all, and I am looking forward so eagerly for that!

I also would like to address something that is popping up over and over in my comments section for this story, and rather than give everyone the same ‘copy and paste’ response, I’d like to post this note here and answer the question so that it is clear and that new readers who find this work can also refer back to this chapter if they so happen to have the same question later.

The consistent question I keep getting in this fic is: “When will Nines stop being so mean (or a bitch lol) towards Gavin?”

The answer to this is honestly simple, my dears.

This fic IS tagged as a SLOW BURN and hate-to-love relationship fic. That basically means Nines and Gavin won’t even be on friendly terms anytime soon, my mans. They hate each other for reasons I mentioned up to chapter 5, and it will take some time for them to even become friends, honestly.

Nines is also a jerk for a very good reason, which will be explained and figured out by Gavin later, which is all a part of the plot developing, my mans. I wanted to really flesh out this fic and make it longer than anything else I have ever written, which is why it is a slow burn and developing this way.

I understand that to some people, Nines is being ridiculously cold in terms of how he speaks with and treats Gavin, but he will be doing this still for some time, to be very honest with you guys. Gavin will really have to work hard on peeling away the layers Nines has built around himself, and that can’t be accomplished overnight!!

But please don’t worry and don’t think that Nines will always be like this throughout the fic. He is like this now (and will be for a while), but I am sure by the time he changes, a lot of you will appreciate how his character developed and changed a lot more this way.

There are also some very clever theories bouncing around about Shelley and how her relationship with Gavin will change and influence Nines, even, and I want to tell you all that you guys are absolutely on the right track and picking up on my hints!! But I can’t really dive deeper into them because I do not want to spoil anything for anyone!!

That’s all I wanted to say for now, my mans, and I will be working hard on responding to everyone’s comments within a day or two at the latest, and the next chapter should be up within 3 days or so!

Take care, and enjoy your week guys!


	7. The Ceremony

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go guys!!! Gavin and Nines ARE TYING THE KNOOOOOOOOOOOOOTTTTTTT!!!!!!!! 😲😲😲😲😲👀

 

It was already almost 9 a.m. when Gavin finally dragged his ass out of bed. He’d showered, shaved, put on the best deodorant he had brought with him, gelled his bangs back a little, and dressed in freshly purchased clothes he’d managed to snatch away before his life turned to shit...also known as: ‘Fowler made me marry Nines when he knows we both hate each other more than enemies do.’

Begrudgingly, once Gavin had cleaned himself up as best as he could, he wore dark socks, dark grey dress pants, and a black and red Au Noir shirt. He’d rolled the sleeves up, pushed the cuffs back, and huffed at himself when his get-up was complete. This outfit had been meant to be worn at a good club where he could meet some hot guy on a Friday evening to go home with-for the first time ever, and now?? Now he was fucking getting _married_ in it.

Someone up in heaven must’ve hated him.

Standing before the mirror, he sighed as he felt terribly exhausted on the inside. While he looked fresh on the outside, he really was falling to bits internally, and he knew why.

Tonight was the big night.

Captain Fowler had arranged for them to meet with him in a board room on the top floor of the DPD first and foremost. There, they would have a little chat about the ceremony for a while, and engage in other stupid formalities too, no doubt. Afterwards, they would meet up with Hank and Connor, as well as a few other ‘witnesses’ who’d expressed an interest in participating in the ceremony.

After that was going to be a small lunch break, and during that time, they had to drive down to City Hall and obtain, finalize, and sign the marriage certificates and documents. When they were finished with that, they had to head over to the New Testament Church of God In Christ in Detroit, where the ceremony would be performed and blessed by a priest. An actual motherfucking priest. What joy.

And all of this would happen in front of the witnesses, too.

Jesus Christ…they would have to become a merry, jolly couple, now…well…not literally, but yes literally!!!!

Tugging lightly on his hair in frustration, Gavin suppressed a pained cry as he walked over to his closet and pulled out his black dress shoes. Those bastards were placed on the highest shelf inside the large closet, and when Gavin stood up on his toes to reach for it, he began cursing his genetic pool for giving him such short legs.

He’d nearly swiped at the box the shoes were in, when he accidentally knocked down another row of shoes. One by one, they all came clamoring down on his head, and Gavin screamed in anger as he fell out of the closet.

The shoes followed him, and the boxes slid all over the clean floors that were slippery due to how clean they were.

Gavin began panicking, not wanting his shoes to scratch the floors. Nines would definitely kill him if that happened, and he’d already spent almost three hours cleaning the kitchen the night before! He was _so_ not in the mood for fixing up floors, and he had no damn clue how to even start!

Bending down to collect the mess off the floor, Gavin hurriedly picked the shoes up off the floor, when one of the boxes fell open, and his favorite All-Star black and white Converse sneakers were facing him. He sighed, sitting down on the floor, and deciding to take a moment or so to ruminate.

Holding the shoes in his hands, he ran his fingers along the shoelaces, sighing as he remembered the first time he’d received these shoes…

It’d been a gift from his father to Gavin when he first made it as a Detective in the DPD. His father had been so proud that he’d wept for hours when Gavin told him the good news, and then the older Reed had driven up all the way to Detroit to see Gavin. The shoes were kept in perfect condition ever since, as Gavin had only worn them maybe twice? They were good shoes, and he wasn’t going to break into them as easily as he had his other shoes.

_“Guess you guys’ll have to sadly go back to your storage, huh?”_

He stood up to put them back in their box and on the shelf, when he got a weird itch in his toes. Gavin scratched at his feet gently, and as he was about to put the Converse sneakers back, his eyes swept over his form of dress one more time.

……

He had a very, very interesting idea, all of a sudden.

Peeking over at his reflection in the large mirror, he smirked with confidence and glee.

_“I think I have just the thing to serve as a very good ‘pick-me-up’ that’ll help set the mood and tone for this wedding!!”_

{---@```---@```---}

 

Nines had sat beside Gavin quietly in the back of the long black limousine, practically molding himself into the side door of the vehicle just to create enough room between his body, and his fiancé’s. To say the ride was ‘awkward’ would’ve been a huge understatement. Not only did Nines and Gavin not even once look at each other, but they hardly even communicated.

Nines merely pointed into the backseat when the limo had arrived, which was a silent gesture for Gavin to get the hell in first. Once Gavin had, Nines got in from the other side of the vehicle, and when the doors had automatically closed, Gavin had helped himself to a bottle of the expensive wine that had been offered as a pre-wedding gift from Captain Fowler.

The bottle had been presented and kept in a bucket filled with ice to keep it cold and refreshing, and then a little tray presenting a single wine glass for Gavin appeared next to it. Gavin barely took a sip when he felt it was enough. He didn’t want to be beyond drunk at half-past-ten in the morning. They still were expected to meet with Fowler, and he didn’t want to sway like a drunkard before his superior’s eyes.

When they reached the DPD, Gavin found that they had to head in through an entrance normally reserved for and accessed by those who were ‘higher up’ in the precinct ‘food chain’. They were kept away from everyone else as they silently rode the elevator up to the top floor of the DPD, and two large men in grey suits stood on guard before the doors of the meeting room they were expected to meet Fowler in.

Gavin had to stop himself from rolling his eyes when Nines held up his hand and the guards scanned it on an identification pad before unlocking the doors.

_“All this fuss for a stupid wedding?? I suddenly feel like royalty!”_

The meeting room was clean, bright, and a long, dark brown table with at least fifteen chairs placed around it was in the center of the room. Fowler was seated in the chair closest to the doors, and he turned around and gave both Nines and Gavin a firm handshake.

Their Captain was dressed as he normally would be, and his clothes seemed a little ‘worn out’, though Gavin supposed that this was no way what Fowler would be wearing to their wedding.

To save time from having to change, Nines was already dressed in his best, which consisted of brand new black dress pants with the shiniest belt Gavin had ever seen, black dress shoes shipped in from Italy-also equally as shiny as the damn belt-and a long-sleeved white dress shirt that had been worn beneath a sleeveless black vest with tiny white buttons on the front. Nines was even wearing a black bow tie to go with the white dress shirt, but Gavin still thought he looked like a goofball anyway.

“Gavin, Nines,” Fowler nodded at them both, “please have a seat.”

Immediately sitting on either side of Captain Fowler, the two men sat with their arms crossed while Fowler pulled out a white folder. He opened it up, sliding out plenty of forms and documents, but before Gavin could peer down at them and begin reading them, Captain Fowler placed a large hand over the papers.

Gavin looked up with a raised eyebrow.

Captain Fowler gave him a serious look that wasn’t one of anger, but genuine concern. Nines sat coldly staring across the room at the tinted windows, and didn’t move an inch.

“Gavin,” Fowler began in a soft tone of voice, “before I get you to read these and sign them, I want to ask you a very important question.”

Gavin nodded, “Alright, Cap, but if we could kinda hurry up, I’d appreciate it…” he cast Nines a foul look, “…I haven’t had nearly enough coffee I need to wake up, because _someone_ rudely woke me up this mornin’ by givin’ me a god damn heart atta—”

Nines glared over at him, finally meeting his eyes for the first time that day. “Well I wouldn’t have to do that if a certain _someone_ hadn’t decided to make ‘Midnight Margaritas’ and made a huge mess in my kitchen!!!”

Before Gavin could snap back at him, Captain Fowler grabbed two pens, and he threw them at both Gavin and Nines.

“Enough is enough,” he said with a tired look upon his face, “just sign the damn things, and I’ll explain what’s going to happen from here on.”

Grumbling, Gavin grabbed his pen, and looked over the first long sheet.

It was a **‘Mutual Agreement Clause’** which stated that although he was going to be ‘married’ to Nines *shudder*, their workplace ‘relationship’ wouldn’t be affected by it at all.

While Gavin’s eyes browsed and skimmed the document, searching for where he could sign his signature, Fowler explained into full details what the Clause meant.

“Everyone in the precinct is expected to treat you the same,” he said in a deep voice as he sat back and folded his hands in his lap, “you won’t be shown any discrimination just because you’re with Nines, and all members of the narcotics unit won’t be permitted to treat you any differently, Gavin. Simply put, I won’t tolerate nepotism, discrimination, or anything of the sort. You will still be expected to come to work as per usual, and you are to report to myself and Human Resources on any forms of bullying, harassment, discrimination, threats of sexual violence, derogatory statements being thrown your way, or physical assault.”

Gavin nodded as he finally found the horizontal line on the bottom of the back of the page. “Got it, Cap,” he quickly signed his name, and was onto the next sheet in a second.

Trying to keep up with him, Fowler pointed at the top of the page, which was labeled: **‘DPD Workplace Relationship Policies and Guidelines’**.

Setting his pen down, Gavin glared up at Fowler. “Sir, what’s this?”

“If you’ll let me explain, Gavin,” Fowler ignored the snort coming from Nines as he signed the rest of his own set of documents, “this states that it is against the Detroit Police Department’s guidelines and regulations for you and Nines to have any kind of a relationship as long as you both are employees here.”

Gavin nearly dropped his pen as his eyes widened in shock, “Woah, woah, woah, sir!” he let out a nervous chuckle, “with all due respect sir, I wouldn’t even ever _dream_ of gettin’ together with Nines, let alone actually bein’ with him!!!”

Nines hissed out, “The feeling is fully mutual, Detective Reed.”

Rolling his eyes, Fowler nodded, “I know, Gavin, but this is more so to save my own ass than anything else, and it would all be the exact same if you were wanting to ‘marry’ Officer Chen, or Lieutenant Anderson.”

Gavin nearly threw up in his mouth as he imagined Hank Anderson in a wedding dress, carrying a colorful bouquet of flowers as he tried balancing himself up in white high heels.

“Fair enough, sir.”

Fowler waved at the rest of the documents, “I’ll go over the rest if you want, but they’re pretty self-explanatory in regards to your jobs and the case.”

Gavin nodded and went to read them, but then a lightbulb went off in his head.

“Oh! Sir?” he cried out a little eagerly, causing Fowler to raise his eyebrows expectantly at him.

“Reed?”

Gavin bit his lower lip, hesitating for a moment when he saw Nines’ LED light turn yellow. It then flashed to blue, as if Nines knew of Gavin’s hesitation.

Nines stood to his feet, neatly placing the documents in one pile as he slid them over to Fowler.

“If you’ll excuse me, Captain,” he said in a gruff tone while straightening his bow tie, “I’ll have to meet with my team and update them on the Ouroboros case…if I have your permission, sir?”

Fowler gave him a thumbs-up, “Do what you have to do, Nines, we were just about finished here anyway.”

Slightly bowing, Nines clasped his hands behind his back, and exited the room silently as he’d entered it.

Gavin let out a sigh of relief, “Finally.”

“Reed?” His attention turned over to Fowler once again.

“What did you want to tell me, son?”

Once again, Gavin bit his lower lip softly, but then looked down at the pages and let out a soft sigh, “You wanted to ask me something when I first sat down, sir?”

He saw hesitation for the first time in Fowler’s face, and it moved across the older man like a cloud. Soon, it hung behind his eyes, but then the next minute, it was gone. Fowler smiled gently and warmly as he leaned in close to Gavin and held a twinkle in his eyes.

“So…Gavin…” he chuckled deeply, “…about those Midnight Margaritas…”

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

The rest of the day breezed by like the hurried strokes of the paintbrush of a skilled artist. The minutes and hours ticked by, and Gavin was momentarily permitted to see Hank and Connor-the inseparable duo already dressed in matching grey suits and black ties and black dress shoes-as well as the rest of those he considered ‘friends’, before it was time to get back in the limo and head over to City Hall.

Gavin’s heart had been doing backflips and leaps the entire time. It got a lot worse when he looked through the rearview mirrors and saw Captain Fowler’s car right behind them as they drove up to the pristine, clean building in no time. He was sweating even more so when they exited the vehicle and were led up the steps and inside the building, with at least half a dozen security guards watching the perimeter of the building while Captain Fowler, Nines, Gavin, Hank, and Connor were taken to a room with huge, long white walls that held the portraits of famous Presidents of the United States of America.

A long rectangular table held two copies of the marriage certificate, and the moment Gavin’s eyes landed on it, he nearly crumbled back into Connor’s arms. The RK800 held him securely, and as Gavin collected himself, an elderly man with a bald head walked in.

He introduced himself as a member of the City’s council, and the room they were in was the Clerk’s office. He’d asked for identification from both Gavin and Nines, which had been presented to him by Nines without much of a hassle, but Gavin couldn’t move. He was frozen stiff to the spot, and Fowler yanked out his I.D. and showed the clerk a birth certificate, a driver’s license, and Gavin’s work badge.

When the clerk declared it was all good enough, Fowler stood by with Hank and Connor as witnesses, and they signed their own forms stating that they were in attendance to Nines and Gavin obtaining their marriage certificate.

In less than twenty minutes, Gavin and Nines had received the marriage certificate with all the signatures provided and sealed for approval.

As they were led out of the building, Gavin’s heart hammered and thumped like the great hammer of a giant booming across the vast lands it terrorized.

He was now fucking married, and there was _still_ the evening ceremony to go along with it.

HE WAS FUCKING MARRIED!!!!!!!!

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

The Church was grand. It was beautiful, it was lovely, it was serene, and it was soothing to walk into as Gavin peered down at the red carpet, and the stone angels placed on either side of the large Church.

_“If only I was just coming here for a fucking confession; not a wedding!!!”_

Nothing could steady his nerves, but he held his head high and approached a man named Father Avery. The Priest was a tall, lanky man with shoulder-length long, silvery hair and a thin mustache over his upper lip. Dressed in all black and with the white collar distinctly around his neck, he welcomed everyone inside the Church, but announced that they were still waiting on a few guests to arrive.

That didn’t help Gavin’s heart. It began racing as he panicked, and he raced over to a dark brown pew and hid himself down in it while Connor chased after him with Hank closely followed behind.

“Gavin!! What’re you doing?!? The RK800 gently placed his hands on Gavin’s shoulders in a move of comfort, but Gavin groaned in misery as he held his head in his hands.

Hank shook Connor, “We can’t hide here!”

“Gavin!”

The man groaned again and removed his hands from around his face. “I can’t d-do this, you guys!!”

This drew a deep frown from Hank. He leaned over the pew as he stared down at Gavin, “What the heck do you mean, Reed?! It’s your own wedding!!! You can’t just decide you don’t want to go through with this suddenly!”

Waving up at the Priest, Gavin hissed softly, “He said there’ll be more people coming in, Hank!!!”

_“More people = more embarrassment!”_

Connor rubbed his back in smooth, gentle circular motions. “They’re here to make the ceremony seem official and legitimate, Gavin, don’t worry about them!”

“Yeah!” Hank chimed in, “it’s nothing to worry about, Reed; just a photographer, a reporter, and a journalist coming in to snap and automatically upload it all into the daily news and let the whole of Detroit know that--OOWW!!” he roared and leapt back when Connor elbowed him roughly.

“You’re not helping, Hank!”

“Sorry.”

Gavin peeked up ahead at the front of the Church and saw Nines standing like a statue beside Father Avery, a security guard, and Captain Fowler. Father Avery was chatting politely with Fowler, but Nines looked to be scanning the entire Church. His eyes turned dark as he looked around every corner of the large building, just skimming through everyone, but also on alert.

Suddenly, the doors burst open, and half the entire DPD walked in merrily. A few photographers accompanied them, bringing in the latest-and-greatest technology with them to capture the event live and for everyone in North America to see…

All the officers Gavin knew such as Officer Person, Chris Miller, Ben Collins, Tina Chen, and many, many new officer androids walked in wearing suits and fancy jewelry. They chatted excitedly as they sat down on the pews comfortably, and in less than ten minutes, more than half the pews were full of spectators.

_“They think it’s a real wedding! Oh my god!!!”_

Unable to take it anymore, Gavin tore out the back doors towards the limousine still parked outside.

“GAVIN! WAIT!!!”

He was aware of Connor and Hank following him, but that didn’t stop him from ramming himself against the locked back doors as his fists pounded on the tinted glass.

“I WANT TO GO!!! I WANT TO LEAVE!!”

Hank grabbed his shoulders, roughly spinning him around as he slammed Gavin against the door of the vehicle.

“LISTEN HERE, REED!” Hank’s rough growl made Gavin snap up to attention, and even Connor silenced himself as he stood by, only observing.

“YOU CAN PLAY RUNAWAY BRIDE ALL YOU WANT, BUT THE FACTS ARE THAT THIS IS FOR YOUR OWN DAMN GOOD!” Hank jabbed a finger into Gavin’s nose angrily, eyes boiling over with anger as his cheeks puffed out.

“SO JUST TAKE YOUR TIME OUT HERE, GET YOURSELF TOGETHER, AND WHEN YOU’RE READY, GET YOUR ASS BACK INSIDE AND STAND WITH NINES AS HIS HUSBAND!!”

Connor approached cautiously, LED light yellow, “He’s right, Gavin,” he added gently, almost as if he wanted to coax Gavin inside the Church, “Nines is doing this for your own good, and it’d be a lot better for you to just cooperate.”

Yanking his hair roughly in his fingers, Gavin spun around and looked down into the backseat of the limo. The little dark plastic bag he’d brought with him was still hiding under the seat where he’d left it, and his body began tingling when he remembered his plan that very same morning.

“Gavin?”

Spinning around slowly as he combed his hair back neatly into place with his fingers, he nodded at Hank and Connor. “I understand,” he looked over at the driver, who was having a smoke as he kept a close eye on the trio.

“You guys go on inside, there’s just something I need to do before I join you.”

Wanting to respect his wishes, Hank and Connor backed off, but Hank kept throwing him stern looks all the way until he was inside the Church with Connor.

Once he was all alone, Gavin waved over at the limo driver, “Hey! Could you unlock the back doors for a moment? There’s something I need…”

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Nines pounded violently on the locked bathroom door in the Church. He felt as though he was about to burn a fuse in explosive rage any moment. Gavin had locked himself in the bathroom, and had taken his sweet, sweet time while everyone waited inside.

The photographers were already through with setting up their equipment, Father Avery was patiently waiting, and Captain Fowler was getting anxious. It was time to hurry up and get moving with the ceremony.

“Detective Reed!” he barked at the door while resisting the urge to kick it down, “hurry up with whatever mindless activity you’re preoccupied with in there! You can’t keep stalling everyone!!”

“I’ll be out in a minute!!!” came Gavin’s quick reply.

Nines sighed, but backed away from the door as he went to stand at the front of the Church in his rightful place. There was nothing else he could say, and he didn’t want to truly break down the door of the Church. The day was already bad enough without having extra charges filed for damage to religious property.

Inside the bathroom, Gavin stared at himself one final time in the mirror before smiling and flashing himself a thumbs-up seal of approval.

“Lookin’ good, Gavin Reed!!!” he tossed the plastic bag away in the garbage can, checked his shirt and pants, and was ready to go.

Brushing his hair back one final time, he straightened his posture up and unlocked the door.

As expected, the photographers were sitting in the front row next to Captain Fowler. Guards stood all around the Church, and Father Avery greeted him with a warm smile that made his mustache twitch upwards slightly.

Gavin proudly walked down the long row leading right up to where Nines stood in front of the Priest, hands folded neatly in front of himself as he glared at Gavin for being a little late.

Photos snapped as Gavin walked right up and stood before Nines, but he refused to meet the android’s eyes. Gavin wasn’t able to resist posing a little for the cameras, and he grinned at them as Father Avery held out a small sheet of paper before himself.

Once the photographers paused in their snapping of photos, Father Avery grinned as he held his head up high and opened his mouth to speak.

“Let us join hands in the union of Nines and Mr. Reed, for we are all gathered here in Holy Matrimony of these two loving individuals in the name of—”

Captain Fowler suddenly stood up after letting out a terrifying roar that made everyone in the Church jump up in their seats.

He pointed angrily down at Gavin’s feet, “HEY!!! JUST WHAT THE HELL DO YOU THINK YOU’RE DOING PLAYING AROUND LIKE THIS, REED?!?!”

Immediately, all eyes in the Church were at Gavin’s feet.

Gavin was wearing his black and white All-Star Converse, and he proudly lifted a leg into the air as he threw Captain Fowler a smug grin.

“I’m bein’ me, sir!!” he cried out enthusiastically while Hank facepalmed and Connor sighed.

Fowler stormed up to Gavin and spat out in his ear, “Take. Them. Off. NOW.”

Gavin shook his head stubbornly, “NO!”

“Take them off, or so help me god, Gavin, I’ll—”

“They’re MY shoes!” Gavin argued back, “if I’m gonna get married, I want to at least do it in something my dad gave me so many years ago, and it will be done MY way, or it’s not happenin’ at all!”

Pausing for a moment, Fowler’s eye twitched. He pointed a finger up at Gavin, “You little—”

“Just leave it be, Captain,” Nines intervened, sighing in exhaustion as he stared at a wall behind Gavin. “I just want this to be over with, so let Detective Reed do whatever he sees fit.”

Having no other choice, Fowler threw his hands in the air as he spun around and went to go sit back down in his spot. He leaned over and whispered to a photographer quickly, “Try to keep his feet out of the pictures, for fuck’s sakes!!”

Father Avery cleared his throat, a small smile on his face the entire time. “Now then, let us continue…”

Gavin drowned out the rest of Father Avery’s speech, and he refused to hold hands with Nines. This suited the RK900 just fine, however, and he merely stood like a rock with his hands firmly planted at his sides while looking at everything and everyone else in the Church aside from Gavin himself.

“I now kindly ask the partners to exchange rings; a symbol of the union of their joining!”

Gavin’s eyes blew open.

_“Wait, what…what rings?!!? RINGS?!?!”_

No one had told him about rings!!!

Panicking, he threw Fowler a surprised look, and his superior held out a hand as he approached the front of the Church and stood next to them.

He withdrew from his fancy grey suit pockets two small boxes, and as Gavin stared at them with a wide-open jaw, two golden wedding bands were gleaming up into his eyes. The lights bounced off them nicely, but they appeared to be for the purposes of the ‘show’, and didn’t appear to be too expensive.

_“I hope those didn’t cost a fortune, because I do NOT have the money for this crap!!”_

Handing one ring to Gavin, and one to Nines, Fowler sat back down and smiled-a little too eagerly-at the couple.

Swallowing thickly, Gavin stared over at Nines, and then felt his left hand being tugged almost violently forward. Gavin practically flew forward as Nines yanked his hand towards himself, and while glaring down at Gavin’s fingers, Nines’ LED light flared red. In a few rough motions, he practically rammed the wedding ring on Gavin’s third finger, and Gavin had to wince at how roughly he was being treated.

Father Avery stared at Gavin, next, signaling that it was his turn to place his ring on Nines’ finger now.

Wanting to be as violent with Nines as he had been with him, Gavin viciously scratched the back of Nines’ left hand before snatching it up in his own grip. Gritting his teeth together strongly, he bit down his pride and ego as he studied Nines’ long fingers resting in his grip.

Gavin hated to admit it, but even Nines’ hands were far more perfect than his own…asshole!!!

Holding the ring up in his opposite hand, Gavin bent Nines’ ring finger up so harshly that he thought he’d broken it for a moment.

_“Androids don’t have bones, though…well, shit…”_

That still didn’t stop him from forcing the ring as violently and furiously on Nines’ finger as he could, and then he stood back and dropped his hands to his sides, wiping his hands quickly over his pants. He didn’t even want the slightest bit of ‘Nines’ on his skin.

Turning to smile one more time for the cameras, Gavin grinned widely, though it was a lot more pained, now. His ring finger burned, and it was turning pink from the amount of force Nines had used when he shoved the ring onto it…

Father Avery held up his hands, holding them above Nines and Gavin, “May the Lord in His goodness strengthen your consent and fill you both with His blessings! What God has joined together, let no man put asunder!” Father Avery forced them to join hands, and then he blessed them while the officers of the DPD whispered in hushed tones.

“It is at this time that I now pronounce you partners-from here on vowing to support each other as you walk down the beautiful path God has laid out for you,” Father Avery continued while camera flashes bounced off every corner of the Church.

“…May the blessings of life, the joy of love, the peace of truth, and the wisdom and strength of Spirit be your constant companion, now and always, as partners in this wonderful and blessed union! You may seal this union with a kiss!”

Gavin nearly exploded right then.

_“FUCKING WHAT!??!?! A KISS?!?!? NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!! JEFFREY FOWLER!!! I’M GOING TO FUCKING KILL YOU!!!!!!!!!!”_

As he began panicking, the voices of his colleagues grew louder, and then, the entire room went dead silent, as if everyone had been holding their breaths, eagerly waiting for a kiss.

“ _Helpmehelpmehelpmehelpmehelpmehelpme!!!!!! Someone help meeeee!!!”_

There was a brush of cold air against his face, and Gavin bit down hard on his lower lip, breaking skin in the process. He winced as he stared at Nines while the tall android leaned close to him.

However, Nines leaned into Gavin’s cheek, and he turned his head to the side as he whispered emotionlessly, “Don’t get too carried away, Detective.”

And then, Nines angled and tilted his head in the perfect way so that it only appeared he was kissing Gavin. He moved his head to the side, and his lips just barely hovered over the corner of Gavin’s lips, and as everyone in the Church let out an excited squeal-thinking they had indeed kissed-Gavin felt what barely seemed like a tap against his jaw.

The moment was gone when a few eager photographers snapped their photos, and one of them proudly stood back as he digitally uploaded it and formatted it already into a news headline. “I got the best shot!!!”

Nines pulled away from Gavin quickly, hands still at his sides as he stared at the wall behind Gavin’s head with a dull expression painted on his face.

Rounds of cheers went on within the Church, and some of the officers even threw paper confetti they’d brought with them. The evening sun peeked in through the magnificently decorated panes of glass in the Church, as if shining down in approval upon them, but Gavin didn’t feel any of it.

His cheek and jaw still burned, even though Nines had barely pressed the center of his lips coldly against Gavin’s skin in a ‘tap’ to give off the appearance of a kiss. Gavin wanted nothing more than to be shot at this moment. He swayed lightly, his head swimming with pain that began as a throbbing ache before it seemed as if someone had bashed him over the head with a brick. He felt so, _so_ sick to his stomach.

Connor and Hank ran over to him and hugged him while Captain Fowler shook Gavin’s hand after forcefully taking it in his own.

“Smile!!!!!!!”

Gavin turned his neck towards the camera, lips barely quivering in a grimace.

Nines stood next to Fowler, and he grinned with his perfectly white teeth while standing tall with his chest puffed out proudly.

SNAP!!!!!!!!

Gavin so badly wanted nothing more than to go home and wash his entire body in varsol, bleach, scalding hot water, and then more bleach…especially over all the areas Nines had touched him.

SNAP!!!!!!

He closed his eyes as the lights practically blinded him, and he felt his knees turning into weak sticks that were barely able to keep his body up.

_“I’m married…oh dear god…I’m now officially married…what do I do!?!? What do I do?!?!”_

SNAP!!!!!!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Gavin!!! Not his version of a 'happily-ever-after' !! 😰😰😰😭😥💔  
> But this whole thing was seriously soooooooo much fun to write XD
> 
> P.S., and YES, I totally feel Gavin Reed WOULD wear combat boots or Converse sneakers to his own wedding, and no one can change my mind 😁👌


	8. The Morning After Events

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to take a second to just apologize waaay ahead of time to any Spanish-speaking readers I have. I don't speak Spanish myself, and I am mainly using Google translate and like one other site to translate the Spanish dialogue here.  
> A reader by the username JayTodd may be helping me IF I have gotten some of the Spanish wrong in here, so please note that the translations here are 'loose' translations to the best of my poor-ass translating skills lol  
> I seriously apologize if it is not accurate, but there may be edits down the road, just so that is all clear.
> 
> Now, HUUUUUUUUUUUGE warning in this chapter as well! This chapter contains a graphic depiction of a suicide, and I warn EVERYONE ahead of time for it NOW! If that will trigger someone, PLEASE DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER!!!!!! You have been warned!!!!!!

**_Wedding bells have tolled for Detective Gavin Reed of the Detroit Police Department just this past Saturday evening!! The thirty-six-year-old Detective who has been a public defender and a full-time dedicated peace-keeper tied the knot with his own co-worker, Nines!!_ **

**_Nines has been well known for leading and organizing one of Detroit’s most advanced narcotics team, with promises of ending the terrors of ‘Slo-Freeze’, and hopefully, the imminent capture and arrest of every single member of the terrifying gang known as Ouroboros. While horrifying in their own right, the gang activity has slowed down since Nines and Gavin teamed up together!_**

**_Detective Reed also was involved with part-time volunteering at a fire department just last year, but now it seems he’ll have to put out the fires of passion blazing and burning high between himself and his now-husband Nines!_ **

**_The handsome couple—_ **

Gavin flung his tablet to the side, angrily roaring at the kitchen ceiling. It wasn’t even 7 a.m. on a Monday, and the world couldn’t just let it go that he’d experienced one of the most embarrassing moments of his entire life!! Now, all of North America knew he was married!!!

He’d spun that word around in his mind since he returned from the ceremony.

_“Married, marriage, married, I’m married, I’m not single, I’m married, I had a wedding, marriage, marriage, I HAVE A HUSBAND!!!!!!!!”_

That was putting it mildly. Gavin wasn’t averse to ever being with a man, he wasn’t against getting into a long-term, committed relationship, and he wasn’t opposed to the idea of marriage. But being married to NINES?!?! Now that was just horrifying.

He had to now think of Nines as his partner, and worse…his _husband,_ just to keep appearances up. As if the word ‘husband’ hadn’t been frightening enough all on its own when it was associated with Nines, every time Gavin looked down at his left ring finger, the golden wedding band he wore only served as a grim reminder of the fact that he was bound (for the time being) to Nines.

Gavin shuddered as he drummed up an image of himself walking around in tight booty shorts while he brewed a fresh cup of coffee every morning, Shelley at his side happily while he wore a pair of pink, fluffy bunny slippers. He would be whistling ‘How D’Ya Like Your Eggs In The Morning’, and then his _husband_ would join him in the kitchen and kiss him on the cheek…

NOOOOO!

_“I’m completely mortified! I’ll never ever be able to show my face in public again!!”_

But he had to.

Today was a regular work day, and things had to go back to the way they were. The world wasn’t going to stop revolving around the sun just because Gavin Reed had recently gotten married, and that was how brutal life just was at times.

Grumpily grabbing his steaming cup of coffee, Gavin picked up the carton of milk he’d set out on the table as well, and he poured a little bit of it into his warm beverage. As he poured it and mixed it into his cup, he smelled something foul in the air.

“The hell?”

Setting the carton down, Gavin gathered a drop of milk that had dripped along the side of the carton, and he tasted the milk. Immediately, he wanted to throw up.

_“This is horrible!! It tastes like shit!!”_

Nines thundered into the kitchen, already dressed for work while Shelley floated in behind him, hot on his heels.

Nines barely looked in Gavin’s direction, “Detective.”

Gavin heaved as he shoved the milk carton across the table when Nines stood beside the kitchen table to pick up the discarded tablet.

“Yo! Nines!” Gavin spat, “do you think this milk is still alright? It kinda stinks like dog shit!” Gavin hoped Nines wasn’t trying to poison him, but that was likely just a thought his over-active imagination dreamt up more than anything else.

Growling angrily at him, Nines gripped the milk carton and held it to his side, “Must you always communicate with me as if you were some delinquent who barely made it to the second year of high school?”

_“Fine then! You want me to talk like you, Nines? I can do that no problem!”_

Wiping his lips, Gavin looked up at Nines sweetly. “Hello Nines, do you perchance believe that this liquid dairy product is still suitable for consuming? For I find the odor rather dubious, and akin to that of canine fecal matter…I fear I might contract an illness if I ingest such.” He finished his question by fluttering his eyelashes agitatedly at Nines and smiling even wider at him, though it dripped of sarcasm.

This earned him a dark scowl from Nines. “Kindly cease and desist with the childish games; we have to get to work.”

He wasn’t done yet.

Gavin raised an index finger as he sighed out, “Ah, whatever is the matter? I hope that I have sufficiently adapted my vocabulary to your liking, as I am very fond of it, myself.”

Nines glowered at him, appearing to have already had his fill of Gavin’s antics for the day already.

“Stop it.”

He walked over towards the sink, staring at the underside of the milk carton briefly before he snorted, “The milk has expired, be sure to purchase more if you will, Detective.”

Gavin gaped at him, “Wah?! Why do I have to do it?! It’s _your_ house, isn’t it?”

“It may indeed be my house, Detective Reed,” Nines pressed out icily, “however, I have no such need for food or beverage.”

That was literally all Nines had to offer, and he dumped out the expired milk down the drain of the sink while Shelley hovered by Gavin’s knees. He smiled as he bent down and waved at her.

“Hey you!”

“Detective Reed,” Nines called in a snappy tone, “if you’ll cut the pleasantries short, we must hurry, as we’re already running late.”

Gavin blew a raspberry, “It’s not even seven-thirty in the mornin’ Nines!”

The android set the empty carton down on the kitchen counter, and after one long look at Shelley, she turned and floated by his side. Nines held out the milk carton for her to take.

“See to it that this is disposed of in the recycling.”

She was gone in a split second after having wrapped her barbed tail around the empty milk carton.

Gavin whined, “It’s too early in the mornin’ for this, Nines, I swear!!”

“Your point, Detective?”

Gavin folded his arms over his chest as he stuck out his chin, “I’ve never started my shifts before eight-thirty, at the earliest!”

Nines made his way towards the table again, a hand reaching out as he turned off the tablet and neatly placed it on the edge of the expensive, fancy table. “That was before you were on _my_ team, Detective,” he almost spat down viciously, “but if you wish to revert back to that old lifestyle, I can gladly see to it that you—”

“Okay, okay, okay! I got it! Sheesh!”

Getting up quickly, Gavin brushed a hand through his hair and made his way over to the sink to dump out the nasty coffee. He felt Nines’ eyes on his back the entire time, and it gave him weird chills that ran up and down his back.

“Is there a problem, Detective Reed?”

_“Yeah, its name starts with an ‘N’, ends in an ‘S’.”_

He looked down at the floor, studying how brightly they shined up into his eyes. “Well…it’s just…” he sighed, “…have you seen what’s written in the news about us?”

Nines raised his head high, as if he wanted to prove to Gavin that he was in every way more dominant, more in control, and even more appealing physically as he wielded greater power and strength.

“I have not, Detective,” he answered plainly while his LED light flashed yellow, “I care very little for gossip.”

_“At least I get to go down in history for wearing converse sneakers to my wedding!”_

Gavin nodded as he followed Nines up to the front door. They put their shoes on, and Gavin took a moment to notice that Nines was dressed all in black today.

_“I wonder whose funeral he’s going to…”_

“I don’t think I can really handle what the people we work with will say when we show up t-t-together…” he’d barely made the last word fly out of his mouth in one piece, but he was happy he’d at least tried. After all, his articulation was the least of his concerns at this point.

Nines grabbed a dark spring jacket and slid into it gracefully, “It hardly matters, Detective; what matters is the work we do.”

Gavin groaned again, “Can’t I just be shot so I don’t have to deal with their whispering and the weird looks they’ll give me?”

Turning to face him, a cruel grin formed its way on Nines’ lips. “I don’t have the tools with me to carry that out, Detective, but if you’ll remind me in an hour, I’ll be more than happy to fulfill your wish.”

Gavin shoved him aside with his shoulder as he marched out the front door.

“You’re a bastard, Nines.”

“So you keep reminding me!”

Gavin didn’t even look once at Nines, and he resorted to sitting in the back seat of the black Cadillac he didn’t even notice that Nines had owned.

_“Bastard!!!!!!!!”_

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Not a single damn thing had changed when Gavin and Nines walked into the DPD. A few people looked up for a minute, but beyond that, there were no comments thrown their way, no jokes, no quips, nothing. If Gavin didn’t know any better, he was certain that perhaps Fowler had warned everyone ahead of time to keep their mouths shut, otherwise, they would face disciplinary action.

Damn it, Fowler.

Gavin would’ve preferred fighting his own battles and dealing with smarmy colleagues on his own! He didn’t need anyone swooping in to save the motherfucking day, as if he were some Disney damsel in distress! If people just left him alone, it’d be fine! He didn’t need or want special treatment from anyone! Not from Fowler, not from his co-workers, not from Nines, not from ANYONE!!!

Gavin stumbled down the hall as he followed Nines closely, and when they reached the holding cells, Nines stopped right at the one containing the Ouroboros gang member Gavin had arrested. The burly man was still seated in the corner of the room, hands bound in his lap as his long, dark brown hair fell over his shoulders and curtained his face.

The lights of the cell were then turned on, and the man peered up, black eyes taking in the sight of Gavin and Nines standing right before his cell door. He let out a malicious grin, and then waved his hands around as he screamed at them in Spanish.

“¿Sigues vivo, gusano?”

Gavin swallowed nervously, “What’s he saying, Nines?”

Nines clicked his tongue against his teeth for a moment, as if debating on whether he should translate what the gang member was saying or not.

Finally, he sighed out, “He’s asking why you’re still alive, and he referred to you as a worm.”

Somehow, Gavin wasn’t surprised. He’d expected to be called far worse, but he felt this was only the beginning of his problems.

Placing a hand on the glass barrier between himself and the gang member, he ground out slowly, “We have to interrogate him, don’t we?”

This earned him a haughty scoff out of Nines. “I’ll be handling the interrogation, Detective,” he pressed out quickly, “you stand by and merely observe, take notes, and that’s it.”

As Nines signaled for a female android officer to pull the gang member out of his cell, Gavin whirled around and began chasing after Nines when the tall android stalked off towards the interrogation rooms.

“Hey! HEY!!”

Nines wasn’t slowing down any time soon, and Gavin had to burst into a jog so he could catch up with Nines.

_“Damn those long legs!!”_

Gavin finally caught up to Nines, and he gripped one of his shoulders and tried spinning him around so they were face-to-face. But with Nines being built like a brick house, it was difficult to even get him to turn an inch.

“Nines!” Gavin shook him, and he turned himself around as he snarled and sneered at the short human.

“What is it, now, Detective?” Nines began in a cold drawl that was almost as cold as freshly formed ice over a pond’s surface, “are you having some sort of problem with the instructions I’ve given you?”

Gavin knew exactly what Nines was doing, now; he was using his ‘authority’ and superior position just to get ahead and carry out what he thought was best for the case. Not wanting to get into conflict at barely eight in the morning, Gavin lowered his voice as he waved at a few of his colleagues when they smirked at him and Nines standing in the halls leading to the interrogation rooms.

“Nines,” Gavin whispered gently, “this is kind of my case…I mean,” he nodded over at the gang member currently being walked to the interrogation room, “I was the one who found him and booked him, right? Let me deal with him, please.”

He didn’t want to have to beg anymore, but he really needed to do this alone.

Apparently, his ‘husband’ didn’t seem to agree.

“No,” Nines rejected, turning and pressing the palm of his hand on the identification scanner pad to unlock the ‘observation room’ on the other side of the two-way-mirror in the interrogation room.

Gavin sputtered angrily, “What?? Why not?!” What was Nines’ ‘wise’ and noble reason for refusing his request?!

Pulling out a chair that had been meant for Gavin, Nines made sure the lights were on, the speakers were working, and all the other recording devices were in check before he turned and threw Gavin a bland look.

“The Ouroboros member is already hostile enough, Detective,” he began in a lazy drawl, “the moment he sees you seated before him, ready to carry out the interrogation process…well…” Nines snickered almost cruelly, “…I’m sure you can only begin to imagine the results that will come from that.”

“That’s a bunch of bullshit, and you know it, Nines!” Gavin retorted back loudly, and the officer leading the gang member down the hall even gaped openly at him.

Spinning around on his heels, Nines loomed over Gavin, a dark shadow that seemed to hold a threat within its depths appearing just behind his blue eyes.

“I’m the team leader, Detective,” he hissed dangerously as his LED light went from yellow to red in the blink of an eye, “either you do as I tell you to, or you’re more than welcome to go back to the homicide unit.”

Not giving up easily, Gavin screamed out, “But this is _my_ case! I can handle it!!”

He’d never seen Nines so livid before. The android used the advantage of his height in order to make Gavin feel weak, small, and meager. His shoulders widened out, his eyes peered directly through Gavin’s, and his lips curled back in a silent snarl.

“You do not possess the necessary skills, Detective Reed,” Nines breathed in a sinister tone that only made Gavin’s skin crawl, “it will be done as I say it will be, and I don’t want to hear another word on the subject. Are we clear?”

Gavin bit his tongue rather hard. “Fine.”

Nines exited the observation room, and as Gavin peered through the two-way mirror, he began panicking. The officer set the gang member down, and he offered her a perverted, toothy grin as she made sure he was seated and handcuffed down tightly to the silver table in the center of the room.

“I’ll take it from here, officer,” Nines entered the room, and only sat down once the door was closed.

_“You’re making a big mistake…”_

Nines folded his hands in his lap while offering the gang member a cold, expressionless look.

Minutes ticked by and the gang member and Nines exchanged blank looks, as if silently engaging in a mental game of their own. Finally, the gang member blinked, and his long hair slid down over his shoulders as he shifted a leg.

Nines stared down at his tattoo resting on his forearm.

“Me gusta tu tatuaje.”

As Nines spoke, the recording device and microphones in the room translated what he was saying on the monitors and panels in the observation room.

Gavin read out the translation, “I like your tattoo.” 

_“Great icebreaker, Nines.”_

Silence greeted him as Nines and the gang member stared at each other.

Nines smirked, “¿No quieres hablar?”

“You don’t want to talk?”

Eventually, the gang member smiled up at him and spat out, “Vete a la mierda, maricon.”

“Fuck you, faggot.” Gavin winced as he read that out loud.

Nines however remained unaffected. “¿Te gustaría decirme quién te hizo ese tatuaje?”

“Would you like to tell me who gave you that tattoo?”

Throwing his head back and screaming at the ceiling, the gang member yanked his wrists up as far and as hard as he could, but the restraints and cuffs held him back, and like a dog on a leash, his hands slammed back down onto the table roughly.

Nines looked down coolly at his hands. “Puedo pedir que las aflojen si me dices quien te hizo ese tatuaje.”

“I can ask them to loosen those if you tell me who gave you the tattoo.”

“No me importa el dolor, robot!!” the gang member spat out while still struggling in his bindings.

“I don’t care about the pain, robot.”

Nines nodded, “Entonces esto no debería ser un problema para tu.”

“Then this should be no problem for you…”

Nines suddenly lashed out with an arm, snapping his fingers forward and hooking them around the gang member’s. Like a snake, Nines wrenched open the man’s hand, and he bent back his first three fingers violently.

“NOO! What’re you doing?!?” Gavin knocked roughly on the glass barrier, but Nines didn’t release the gang member’s hand.

Crying out in pain as Nines increased the pressure, the gang member worked a smile onto his face, even though he was still grunting and groaning horribly.

Nines offered him a cold smile that was all ice as he leaned forward a little and calmly said, “Sé que esto duele. Sólo habla conmigo, y te dejaré ir.”

“I know this hurts. Just talk to me, and I’ll let you go.”

Laughing loudly, the gang member hissed back, “Amo el dolor, bastardo!”

“I love pain, bastard!”

This was stupid. Gavin knew for a fact that no matter how much pain Nines was inflicting on the gang member, it wasn’t going to work. If what Nines had previously stated about Ouroboros was true, then this man wouldn’t react to pain.

Pounding on the glass desperately, Gavin spat out, “Stop! That won’t work!!”

Whether Nines had heard him or not was immaterial; he only bent the man’s fingers backwards more, and Gavin definitely heard one of them cracking like firewood.

_“He’s going to break his fingers; he’s going to fucking break each and every one of them!”_

“¿Estás listo para hablar, ahora?” Nines yelled with raw power and dominance in his voice that commanded the gang member’s attention.

“Are you ready to talk now?”

The man suppressed another scream when Nines snapped his middle finger, next.

“I can’t take this anymore!”

Racing to the door, Gavin flung it open, and he ran right next door. All it took was another door handle being pushed down roughly, and Gavin pressed his way inside the room. Nines glared up at him for interrupting.

“Detective! Leave us at once!!”

“NO!”

“I SAID LEAVE!!”

A roar broke the sound barrier, and as Gavin and Nines turned their attention to the gang member, he started cackling like a maniac. His laughter reverberated off the walls of the interrogation room, bouncing everywhere as he laughed and laughed and laughed. He really seemed to be having the time of his life, and Nines slammed his hand down on the table.

“CEASE!!”

Instead, the man only laughed harder, and soon, tears pooled out the corners of his eyes as he doubled over in laughter.

Before Nines could bend his entire wrist back and snap it in half, Gavin stepped up to him and violently shook him by the shoulders.

“Don’t you get it?! You can’t get anything out of him this way!!”

The gang member suddenly stopped laughing, and he turned his head over to gape at Gavin. The looks he was giving Gavin made the Detective freeze up, and he leapt back when the gang member’s long, dark brown hair curtained down over his face and only revealed one black eye twinkling murderously at him.

“¿Crees que estás a salvo sólo porque tu novio está aquí por ti?” he chuckled as he shook his head back and forth like a wild demon, “esto es sólo el principio.”

“What’s he—”

Before Gavin could finish his sentence, he saw the man open his mouth widely, and his tongue began moving back and forth along the inside of his left cheek.

Gavin gasped in fear, “He’s got somethin’ in his mouth, Nines!!”

Nines quickly scanned the gang member, and in a second, he was up on his feet. Yanking the man forward, he yelled out in his face, “STOP RIGHT NOW!!”

The man’s mouth snapped shut for a moment, and Nines gripped his chin roughly in a hand. He shook the man’s head as hard as he could, but it was no use. That tongue slithered around inside the gang member’s mouth, and soon, he turned his head to the side and threw Gavin a cold, menacing glare. That glare soon turned into a psychotic smile.

“Be careful, Mr. Reed,” the gang member suddenly hissed out in perfect English, with only the hints of a Spanish accent lingering on some vowels here and there.

Then, right before Gavin’s and Nines’ very eyes, the gang member coughed, and then swallowed something. Within seconds, his mouth and lips flooded with dark red blood. He spat it all over himself and the floor, his eyes turning wide, but he still managed to work a smile onto his face as his fists clenched into tight balls. He coughed and coughed and heaved, and the blood kept cascading down like a waterfall.

Nines gave Gavin a rough shove, sending him flying to the wall. “DON’T JUST STAND THERE, DETECTIVE!!! GET MEDICAL AID IN HERE, NOW!!”

For a while, Gavin was unable to move. He just couldn’t tear his eyes off the rapidly expanding pool of blood at Nines’ feet. It practically appeared black as it covered the entire floor, soon, and Gavin still hadn’t moved from his spot.

“DETECTIVE?!?!”

He didn’t need to do anything, however; the medical team and emergency services had heard the commotion, and they all burst inside the interrogation room. Gavin was shoved to the side, and eventually dragged out by Tina Chen while Nines held the bloodied gang member up.

The medical team soon brought a stretcher, and they hurriedly wheeled him out of the room as Nines quickly followed behind. Eventually, Captain Fowler burst forth as well, and he slammed a hand down on Gavin’s back.

“WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?!”

Gavin was unable to even talk. He just stood there gaping with his jaw hanging slightly open. What was he to say?

Fowler shook him roughly, “REED! ANSWER ME!!”

Slightly down the hall, Nines heard them, and he called back to them over his shoulder, “HE SWALLOWED A RAZOR BLADE!”

“WHAT?!?!?!” Fowler tore after them with at least another four officers trailing behind him.

In the middle of all the commotion, Gavin finally snapped back to reality. He inhaled sharply, and then held a hand up to his mouth, containing a cry of anger and sadness.

“He…he killed himself…he fuckin’ k-killed himself!!”

Tina rubbed his back in small circles, trying to comfort him as best as she could, “Shhh, Gavin, don’t talk about that, now!”

“He fuckin’ killed himself so we wouldn’t g-get information about Ouroboros!!”

Tina shook her head as she guided Gavin to a small bench resting against a wall. “Gavin, please!”

He held up a hand, “N-no! H-he did it to protect the gang’s secrets!! There was no way he was going to reveal anything…no way…”

_“This is all my fault…this is ALL my fault!!”_

As the investigation team and relief team flooded in to inspect and clean up the bloody mess in the interrogation room, Gavin finally understood just what it meant to be a member of Ouroboros.

Die for the cause. Don’t let them take you, and if they do, don’t let them take you alive.

Now he really knew what they were up against.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And yes, 'How Do Ya Like Your Eggs in the Mornin' is a legit song.  
> Link here : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zJsYgqQ0zEk
> 
> Also, the bit of dialogue the gang member spoke to Gavin right before he killed himself (which I did not translate in the fic because I think if the situation were really to happen, no one would actually do that as a reaction first) is loosely translated as: You think you're safe just because your boyfriend is here for you? and then he says: This is just the beginning.


	9. Reports and Toast

Gavin looked away from the bright light the ophthalmoscope shined into his eyes. He was sitting in the medical examiner’s office, just to get away from everyone and everything. The on-site doctor had rushed around trying to clean his office to prepare for other tasks, barely noticing Gavin using his office as a hiding spot after the horrible suicide incident with the gang member. Though Gavin had been asked a series of psychological questions to determine the severity and likelihood that he would harm himself, the doctor deemed soon enough that Gavin wasn’t going to harm himself...that was right until the doctor caught Gavin with blood splatter on his jeans. Worried, the doctor mistakenly thought it was his own, and he checked Gavin thoroughly.

Once Gavin had screamed at him a few times, he finally backed off and let the man rest for a moment. Unfortunately, Gavin barely had time to process what had just happened in the day, when the door burst open. A flurry of black, blue, and red rapidly moved before his eyes, and Gavin looked up in time to see Jeffrey Fowler and Nines standing in front of him. They both wore equally maddening expressions on their faces, and Fowler placed his hands on his hips, his dark red dress shirt and navy-blue suit pants still covered in some dark stains that were no doubt the gang member’s blood.

Seeing it there sent chills up Gavin’s spine, and he held his head down as he fought hard not to think about what had happened. It was all such a mess…

The doctor frowned at Nines and Fowler, as if they’d interrupted major surgery he’d been in the middle of. “Captain Fowler, Nines,” he nodded curtly at them, “what can I—”

Fowler pointed at the same door he and Nines had bulldozed in through, “Leave us, Doctor.”

Sensing how serious the issue was, the doctor only nodded as he took off his white lab coat and hung it up on a coat rack by the door before closing it after himself softly.

The moment he’d disappeared, Fowler roared down at Gavin, “Start talking, NOW.”

Gavin’s eyes remained drawn to the floor as a hopeless expression crossed over on his face. “What’s there to talk about, Fowler?”

“You tell me just what in the fuck happened, and you tell me every damn detail!”

He resisted the urge to shrug, still keeping his eyes down low, “I don’t know what to tell you.”

Fowler wasn’t having it. He grabbed Gavin by the shirt collar and yanked him up off the medical examining table he’d been currently sitting on. Gavin’s feet dangled up in the air before Fowler practically slammed him back down to stand up on his legs.

“Why don’t you start by explaining to me what in _the hell_ you were thinking by letting our one and only opportunity to learn something about Ouroboros just slip through your fucking fingers?!”

Gavin’s eyes flickered up to Fowler’s face, but the moment they did, he saw Nines standing an inch behind their superior, and the memories all came flooding back. As they hit him harder than a punch to the gut, Gavin lost it. He dashed forward past Fowler and at Nines, hands outstretched as he snarled like a rabid dog.

“IT’S ALL YOUR DAMN FAULT!!! YOU DID THIS!!! YOU DID THIS!!!”

Fowler held him back quickly by wrapping his hands around Gavin’s midriff to hold him back from attacking Nines.

“GAVIN!!!! STOP IT RIGHT NOW!!!” He winced when Gavin’s ribs rammed into his sternum, but he still kept a firm hold on the explosive Detective as best as he could.

“GAVIN!!!!!”

Gavin’s fingers swiped in the air, inches away from Nines’ nose as his eyes clouded over with anger and cruelty for the android.

“I SWEAR TO GOD, I’LL FUCKING END YOU, NINES! CAPTAIN! LET ME GO!!!”

The more Gavin fought and struggled in Captain Fowler’s grip, the more amused Nines seemed to be. He threw Gavin a besmirched look, but otherwise folded his hands behind his back as he maintained eye contact with the angry human.

“JUST LET ME LAND ONE FUCKIN’ HIT, CAPTAIN! WAIT TILL I GET MY FUCKIN’ HANDS ON HIM!!”

“GAAAAVIIIIIN!!!” with a mighty roar befitting a wildcat, Captain Fowler shoved Gavin backwards until he’d effectively trapped the shorter man against a wall with a medical eye exam chart nailed high above on a hook. The walls shook as Gavin’s shoulders slammed into them, and Gavin took in a deep, pained breath as he looked at Captain Fowler as if he was seeing the other man for the first time in his life.

Gavin’s jaw fell wide open, “Sir! I—”

“No, Reed!” Fowler pointed at him aggressively, and it made Gavin cower a little.

“…I’m waiting on your explanation, Reed, and it better be a damn good one!!”

Letting out a strained cry of anguish, Gavin quickly breathed out, “This all happened because Nines refused to listen to me!”

Not sparing a moment, Fowler’s head whipped around to glare over at Nines. “Nines!” he barked out gruffly, “is this true?”

Giving Gavin one heck of an icy scowl, Nines muttered, “It’s a half-truth, Sir.”

“A _half-truth_?!”

Nines didn’t even nod, “Yes, it’s true that Detective Reed felt he was able to handle the interrogation, however…” his LED light immediately turned red, and his eyes seemed to turn a shade darker, even, “…I deemed it inappropriate for Detective Reed to interrogate the suspect.”

Raising an eyebrow, Fowler coughed out, “And why’s that, Nines?”

“The suspect was already incredibly hostile towards Detective Reed,” Nines explained coolly, as though he would rather be anywhere else than in the doctor’s office explaining this issue to Fowler, “and I exercised my judgement as the narcotics team leader and organizer to interrogate the suspect myself, and Detective Reed disobeyed my orders.”

Grinding his teeth together roughly, Gavin took a step forward, “You said that—”

Fowler immediately rounded on Gavin, then, “HOLD YOUR TONGUE!!!”

He’d never heard Fowler yell at him this way before. Flinching, Gavin then cowered once more, slightly nervous as his cheeks flushed. He looked away from his superiors, wishing that at least Nines didn’t have to be in the room for this. So long as Nines was there, he felt even worse, and Gavin felt as though anything Nines said, Captain Fowler would definitely take his side and word on the matter.

He was doomed.

Once Gavin’s mouth had been firmly snapped shut, Captain Fowler turned back to address Nines.

“That man was reacting to Gavin, so you decided to take control of the situation, Nines?” he spat out quickly, “is that what’re you’re telling me?”

“I wouldn’t necessarily phrase it like that, Sir,” Nines blandly mumbled out, “but the chances of the suspect cooperating with our investigation had Detective Reed interrogated him were less than six percent, by my calculation.”

_“That six percent was still a chance we should’ve taken, you ass!”_

Fowler crossed his thick arms over his chest as he walked over towards Nines carefully. “Nines, you’re a very reliable officer, and over time, you’ve proven to be _really_ damn efficient in your job,” Fowler’s words were sincere, yet they still held a little lingering bite, as if he was about to follow-up with an insult or two.

“…but one thing I don’t understand is why you’d think that it was pretty damn good judgement on your behalf not to even check the suspect over to see if he had any concealed weapons on him?!”

Nines glared, as if holding back on screaming at Fowler while his LED light flashed red numerous times, like the blinking of the timer on a bomb before it went off.

“With all due respect, Sir,” he began, looking once briefly at Gavin before staring at Fowler, “I was rather…distracted, and I wasn’t able to exercise my most efficient judgement and therefore, I was unable to take the best course of action as a result.”

Gavin was livid. He knew exactly what Nines was implying, and who he was pointing fingers at in this scenario.

_“You sure say a lot without saying much at all, don’t you, Nines?”_

Fowler squinted at Nines, then, “Distracted?? You were distracted? By what?!?”

Gavin bit the insides of his cheeks, knowing Nines was going to say—

“By Detective Reed, Sir.”

_“You stupid son of a—”_

Fowler sighed as he pressed a hand against his forehead while frowning. The number of wrinkles to be found on his skin there was brutal, but Fowler was beyond stressed now.

“Nines,” he moaned in exhaustion, “if this is about your recent marriage to Gavin, I—”

“It isn’t,” Nines interrupted, shaking his head as he threw Gavin a cold stare, “Detective Reed merely argued with me over who would be the one to interrogate the suspect as I was trying to move the suspect to the interrogation rooms, and I was sidetracked as a result.”

Gavin nearly exploded in a fit of rage again, but Fowler cut ahead as he neared closer to Nines and stood as tall as he could. It was the stance of a man who could take no more, and Captain Fowler fumed at Nines as his eyebrows were set down tightly on his brow.

“Nines,” he almost roared, “that’s not a good excuse for why the suspect wasn’t even scanned or given a proper pat-down! You should know better than that!!”

Gavin almost grinned wickedly when he heard how Fowler had scolded Nines.

_“Ha! Serves you right, you smug jerk!!”_

A finger was suddenly in his face. “And _you_ ,” Fowler growled at him while his dark eyes were shining dangerously, “from now on, Reed, you are to do as Nines tells you, and I don’t want to hear a single word of a complaint out of you. Is that clear?!”

Gavin sputtered as he held out his hands, “B-but—”

“I said, is that clear, Reed?” Fowler’s voice came out again like the mighty roar of a lion before attacking its prey, and Gavin felt his throat dry up immediately upon hearing it.

He swallowed, “Crystal clear, Captain.”

Fowler cracked his knuckles; a sign that he was under severe stress, and wanted to get the hell out of there before he exploded.

“Good,” he sighed as he looked at Nines for a moment, “I expect you to work together with Gavin so you can both complete and submit a follow-up report on the incident today.”

He walked to the door, yanking it open as he threw back over his shoulder, “Submit it to me no later than tomorrow afternoon.”

As the door closed, Gavin glared over at Nines, only to find that his ‘husband’ was already giving him his own pointed death glares.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin was beyond through with everyone and everything when he returned home with Nines around seven-forty that evening. Gavin wasn’t even in the mood to eat, as he’d been so pissed off with Nines that his appetite had just disappeared. Still, not wanting to fall ill, Gavin lazily grabbed two slices of bread and threw them into the large stainless-steel toaster oven after spreading some cheese and garlic on top.

That was the best-albeit laziest-meal he could’ve had when he was wiped like toilet paper. Gavin didn’t ever remember being this exhausted in years, and there was no way he could have put into words how he was feeling.

As soon as he’d kicked off his shoes, he felt his feet burning, as if slightly relieved to be freed from their confines. However, the moment he crept along the ice-cold mahogany floorboards, a familiar stinging ache moved up from the soles of his feet and slid up into his spine.

Gavin trembled and shook as he waited for his meal to be prepared, and as he sat on a kitchen stool thinking about the report he was to write with Nines while his bread heated up nicely in the kitchen, Shelley breezed in and hovered by his knees.

“Good. Evening. Detective. How. Was. Your. Day?”

Snorting angrily, Gavin shrugged, “Don’t even ask, Shelley, don’t even ask.”

Beeeep! “Detective. Is. There. Anything. I. Can. Do. To. Help. Turn. Your. Evening. Into. A. More. Pleasant. One?”

Before Gavin could wave her off, Nines walked in the kitchen was well, clearly trying to make his way inside his work office. He stopped midway when he saw Gavin sitting on a stool in the direction that faced the entrance to the kitchen. Scowling at him as if he’d set the room on fire, Nines tried walking by, but Gavin pointed rudely at him.

“Oh, I _would_ be able to have a more pleasant evening, Shelley,” Gavin started with a sneer pointed at Nines, “but you see, my _darling husband_ had to be a major asshole today, and he not only contributed towards me getting my ass disciplined by my boss, but he’s also this big rude bully who just doesn’t even understand the meaning of the word ‘teamwork’.”

It was silent in the kitchen before Shelley’s eye-slit light turned orange in a warning.

Beeeeeep! “I’m. Sorry. Detective. I’m. Unable. To. Process. Your. Instructions.”

Staring dead-on at Nines, Gavin nodded, “Exactly, sweetie.”

Nines placed a hand down on the counter as he stood before Gavin, “It would have all gone well, Detective, had you listened to my orders the first time around.”

“So you’re sayin’ I brought this all on myself?!?”

“What I’m saying, Detective,” Nines pushed out frostily as he sneered, “is that you lack the foresight that’s required for this job.”

Gavin pointed a finger into Nines’ chest, “It was _my_ fuckin’ case, Nines! I had it!! Who asked you to interfere?!”

Beeeeep!!!! Boooop!!!

Gavin threw a heated look down at the floor, “Not now, Shelley!!”

“Detective Reed—”

“Hellacious job, Nines,” Gavin hissed out with plenty of bite in his tone, “none of this would’ve happened if you just listened to me.”

Holding his head up high, Nines scoffed, “The error wasn’t on my part, Detective Reed, perhaps you should refer back to the initial training you received at the police academy…that is, _if_ you even passed that?”

_“Smarmy prick!!”_

“Of course I passed it,” Gavin growled while clawing at the edge of the granite counter, “did you think that I got where I am today by collecting free handouts?”

Nines shook his head, “No, I think you got where you are today by acting out blindly on a whim instead of learning how to control your emotions and rely on your training.”

Once again, the room was horribly silent as Gavin processed what Nines had said. He couldn’t deny that he had been impulsive, emotional, and all over the place with the interrogation of the gang member. But still, Nines should’ve given him a chance!! He deserved that, at the very least!

Gavin leaned over the counter as he glowered at Nines, “Were you even aware that the gang member knew English?”

Nines scoffed, “I’m not a mind reader, Detective.”

“See?” Gavin chided, “even you were caught unaware of somethin’ today, Nines!”

“I said before that Ouroboros members are from all over. Last month, a member from Sicily nearly abducted a school bus full of children on a field-trip, Detective Reed…” he leaned in even closer, head bent as he snarled at Gavin even more, as if to rub it all in, “…the man was able to speak perfect English, Spanish, French, as well as Italian, and he easily slipped through the school security to do his horribly ghastly deed.”

Gavin swallowed nervously. It suddenly felt as if he’d been kicked in the gut, and he had a feeling that things were going to get a lot worse from now on, still.

Nines leaned back slowly, “Contrary to what your pea-sized brain might believe, Ouroboros members are capable of a greater many things you can only begin to dream about…but no matter how much you may think you understand, your understanding only pales in comparison to the reality of the matter.”

“You are the team organizer and leader, Nines,” Gavin snapped, not wanting to back off yet, despite feeling as if he’d been kicked in the face after imagining a school bus full of innocent children having to deal with a wild, crazy gang member.

“...you should’ve just let me do my job, and then we’d both come away with somethin’ to work with!”

Nines huffed, as if the idea itself was as appealing to him as being run over by a garbage truck. “Weighing your transgressions against mine, Detective, let’s just say mine is like a German Panzer tank,” he ignored the way Gavin’s eyes immediately filled up with confusion, “but yours in comparison to my own are like the RMS Titanic.”

Gavin had nothing to say as he simply glared at Nines. What was there to say, really? Nines was being cruel, and this was overkill, but what could he really argue back that wouldn’t make him seem like a hurt thirteen-year-old?

The best he could do to save his pride and ego was to feign a laugh. It came out dry, however, and he backed it up with a nonchalant shrug.

“Nice analogy, Nines, but that still doesn’t change the fact that you fucked up biiiiiiig time, and you didn’t even know the guy had a concealed weapon right in his fuckin’ mouth.”

Before Nines could say anything to that, Gavin clapped sarcastically. “Phenomenal job,” he nodded his head and then flashed Nines a thumbs-up, “oh, and good work threatening the dude with physical violence when it clearly wasn’t working.”

Nines drummed his fingers on the granite countertop, “I expected resistance from an Ouroboros member. I told you, life is meaningless to them, and they’re even willing to sacrifice the lives of their own families for their cause.”

Gavin rolled his eyes, but otherwise stayed silent. Again, Nines had trapped him into a corner, and there wasn’t much he could offer back. He hated being caught in this type of a position, and he hated that he couldn’t just beat the ever-loving shit out of Nines, too! What was his life, now?!

Nines stared at him for a long time, and Gavin initially wondered if he had something on his face. He ran a hand along his nose, then his cheeks, but when nothing was on his palm, he snarled, “What?”

Nines just sighed. “Your meal is ready.”

“But the toaster didn’t—”

DING!

_“This asshole has to know everything, doesn’t he?”_

Nines began walking away, but Gavin suddenly remembered the report. Not wanting Nines to work on it all alone and make him look like a jackass in it, he stood up abruptly.

“Shelley, my toast!”

She floated upwards, “Request. Processed. Retrieving. Toast.”

Nines was almost in his work office, and Gavin tore after him, managing to slide a hand in the doorway before the door completely shut on his face.

“Nines, wait just a sec!!”

Sighing a little loudly and dramatically, Nines turned around and held open the door for Gavin.

“What is it now, Detective Reed?”

Not wanting to get into an argument this late in the evening, Gavin chewed on his lower lip for a moment as he tried mulling over what it was he wanted to say, and more importantly; _how_ he was going to say it. Due to the ‘wondrous’ things that had transpired during the day, Gavin had a sneaking suspicion that Nines wasn’t entirely ‘over it’ as much as he wanted to portray. It was a lot better for him to just be careful with his approach if he wanted to avoid a screaming match.

“Umm…”

“How intellectually captivating, Detective Reed,” Nines spat hurriedly, pushing the door closed a little further, “now if that’s all you have to contribute as far as a conversation goes, then I’ll just be—”

Pushing himself to speak, Gavin cried out, “The report!! Aren’t we supposed to complete it together?”

Nines looked up at the ceiling for a moment, and he closed his eyes so slowly that Gavin thought he was only doing it to prevent himself from exploding in anger. His grip on the door handle even tightened a little, but Gavin stood by silently and patiently for Nines to speak.

Eventually, Nines opened his eyes again and hummed in thought. “I can take care of it, Detective.”

_“Oh for fuck’s sakes, here we go again. He’s going to try and handle things on his own and fuck it all up for me, too, and then Fowler will kick my ass across the DPD for it, I’ll bet.”_

Gavin shook his head, “No, I don’t agree with that, Nines.”

“I thought as much.”

“Let me work on it, too.”

Gavin could’ve sworn he heard the wood of the door creaking.

_“Holy smokes, I hope it doesn’t break with how tightly he’s gripping it…”_

Nines refused to meet Gavin’s eyes for a while, but he eventually growled out, “Alright.”

Gavin could hardly believe it. “Say what?”

“I said alright, Detective,” Nines stated in an almost hushed tone. “I will remind you to set some time aside later and we can compile your portions with my own before we submit it…just so Captain Fowler receives work that is fluent and doesn’t conflict.”

It was fair, it was good enough, and Gavin knew that was the best deal he was going to get.

He nodded and backed away from the door, “Okay, Nines…umm…”

Nines tilted his head down at him for a moment, and Gavin felt even more awkward than before.

“Umm…so…”

The door slammed in his face a second later.

It was rude for sure, but still, Gavin wasn’t offended in the least. Nines had saved him from something embarrassing, and frankly, he didn’t want to spend another second around his ‘husband’ more than he had to.

The only thing that was on Gavin’s mind for the time being was to eat his meal, try to enjoy it (somehow), and then fall into another peaceful, dreamless sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Daaaang! I feel badly for Gavin Dx can't even communicate with his husband 😰😰😥  
> Oh well, at least Shelley's cute with the toast and all! 🍞


	10. He Doth Protest Too Much

Gavin deleted his segment of the report for the fifth time that morning, and then hurriedly typed it out from scratch all over again. No matter what he did, no matter how hard he worked on his wording and descriptions of the event involving the untimely suicide of the gang member, nothing seemed right. There was no way on earth Fowler was going to accept his report the way it was written, and Gavin went over it one more time as he leaned back in his seat, pushed his legs up onto his desk, and pulled his work laptop closer towards himself.

**_The interrogation began shortly around 8:10 a.m. Nines instructed me to observe and wait in the ‘observation room’, despite the fact that initially, I made the arrest and could have handled the case due to my training and skills._ **

**_Nines vehemently disagreed, and I was ignored, despite trying to assure him that I had everything under control._ **

**_The suspect wasn’t responsive to any of the questions Nines posed, and the interrogation was a waste of time. The longer I observed the incident, the more reasons I had to intervene. It was for the good of the investigation, and for the progression of the case that I eventually exited the observation area and got involved in the situation._ **

**_The interrogation was escalating to physical violence and assault, and despite my warnings, Nines continued to harass the suspect._ **

**_By the time I reached the room myself, the suspect had already swallowed a concealed razor blade that Nines had neglected to find on his person. The interrogation was a huge failure due to negligence on Nines’ part._ **

**_I believe it came to this because he is one big asshole, and there was nothing else but his own pride and ego he wanted to stroke as opposed to listening to me when I told him ‘I got this shit’, dumbass, so step aside and let me do my freakin’ job._ **

Gavin groaned as he read over the last paragraph.

He’d definitely lost control when he got to that part, and the words had just seemingly written themselves without his knowledge, practically. What else was he to really say to Fowler, after all??

“This is a complete mess!” he rubbed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose.

_“Think, Gavin, think!!! Just rewrite it without getting angry!”_

That was so much easier said than done, unfortunately. As often as he’d went over the incident in his mind, his nerves always flared up whenever he recalled how the situation had gone to shit in just a few seconds flat.

It was no good.

Before he could press the ‘delete’ key on his laptop’s keyboard, Gavin felt something brushing against his shoulders and along his back.

“Tsk tsk tsk, I don’t really think Captain Fowler will accept your report with all these expletives, Gavin!”

The Detective sighed as he wheeled his chair around and spun until he was facing Connor. The RK800 gave him a playful smile that Gavin was unable to fully return.

Observing his grumpy face, Connor’s smile fell. “You okay?”

Gavin grunted, “I’m married to Nines, Connor, shouldn’t that tell you plenty?”

Connor giggled, “I can’t say I blame you there, Gavin, but you really need to take it easy at work.”

“Tell me how, and I will, Connor.”

The android merely shrugged, “The way I see it, it could be a lot worse, Gavin!”

Gavin’s eyebrows rose up into his hairline, practically. “Jesus Christ, Connor,” he let out a strained laugh that did not depict joy or happiness at all, “you’re not the one who has to fuckin’ live with Nines! You’ve no idea what kind of an asshole he is!”

Connor waved him off, “So he’s a stickler for rules and is over-the-top organized, so what?”

“He’s an asshole!” Gavin’s screams ricocheted off every wall in the bullpen, practically, and everyone peeked over curiously at him. Whispers went around, phones stopped ringing, and even the coffee machine suddenly stopped working.

Gavin swallowed before ducking his head down over his desk and hiding his face in his arms.

“I hate my life.”

Connor gently rubbed his back, “Don’t be so negative, Gavin! I know yesterday was brutal for you, but you shouldn’t take it so personally.”

One of Gavin’s tired eyes glared up at him from the corner of the inside of his folded arms. “You’re not even workin’ the case, Connor,” he groused heatedly, “you have _no_ idea how frustrating this crap is!”

Connor only beamed at him, “Oh I know how bad it is!” he chortled snootily, “that’s why I refused to join the narcotics unit!”

“You smug little bastard.”

Heavy footsteps approached them, “Hey Reed, how’s married life treating ya?”

Gavin growled as he raised his middle finger, “Kiss my ass, Anderson.”

Hank merely chuckled as he winked at Connor, “I can already see who wears the pants in their relationship!”

The RK800 suddenly eyed Gavin with a dark, impish look. “And I think I know who’s the ‘top’ and who’s the ‘bottom’!” he almost sang out in a childish tune that made Gavin’s skin crawl.

As soon as Gavin had made an attempt at throwing something at Hank and Connor, he saw a long, dark peacoat which he recognized as the one Nines would often wear.

“So this is how you all ensure your productivity rates?” Nines glared down at the trio, reserving the most serious of his scowls for Gavin.

With a loud sigh that sounded affronted by the inconvenience, Hank nonetheless nodded, as if somehow trying to get Nines riled up against Gavin.

Before any one of them could say something to him, Nines snorted as he stared at Gavin’s middle finger, still raised up aggressively at Hank.

Nines rolled his eyes, “Wonderful, with that digit waving around in the air like the flag of the United States of America, it’s no wonder your attitude often limits you from advancing in your work, Detective.” The grin on the RK900’s face was completely self-satisfied.

Nines didn’t even wait for Gavin’s words or his reaction; he merely held his head high up as if he were a part of the Royal Family, and without another word uttered, he started to stalk off towards the Evidence and Archives Room in the basement of the DPD.

Hank, Connor, and Gavin stared at his retreating back, and Gavin-not wanting to be left humiliated in front of his friends-grabbed a ballpoint blue pen, and flung it as hard and as fast as he could at Nines.

It was as if Nines had ESP or eyes in the back of his head. Without even turning to peek behind himself, he merely swayed to the left, and the pen cut through the air like a dart. It sailed past Nines and landed right on Chris Miller. The pen smacked into his chin, and the tip exploded, immediately spraying blue ink all over Chris as a result.

The surprised officer yelped as he nearly toppled over backwards in his chair, trying to get the ink off himself by slapping away at his skin with his bare hands.

He looked up across his desk’s location, and his eyes darted around the bullpen quickly. “Who did that?!?!? Huh!?! What the hell?!”

Tina Chen smirked at him, “Nice goatee, Chris, can we all call you ‘Bluebeard’, now?”

A few other officers giggled as Chris Miller tried wiping his chin and goatee with napkins, but he was still trying to locate who had assaulted him with the pen in the first place. As his eyes narrowed in on Hank, Connor, and Gavin, the other two looked around awkwardly while Gavin bent his head down to pretend like he was busied with something.

Chris Miller wasn’t buying it at all. He pointed directly at Gavin, “HEY! REED!”

At once, Hank and Connor dispersed. “See ya later, Reed!”

“Bye Gavin!”

Gavin gaped up at them in shock, “You guys?! The fuck?!?”

_“They are just leaving me like this?! Some friends you guys are!! Jackasses!”_

Soon, Gavin was left all alone, and it only made Chris more suspicious. He pointed heatedly at Gavin, “Reed! What’s wrong with you?”

Just before Nines opened the door leading to the basement of the DPD, he turned around and threw a satisfied sneer at the trouble Gavin was now in, and the trouble he now had to get himself out of.

_“My husband’s a bastard…no…he’s much, much worse!!”_

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin had run out of time. It was already lunchtime, and he had yet to complete his report. Great! That meant overtime for him! Well, it just so happened that this wasn’t the first time Gavin had to work into his lunchbreak. No sweat, he was used to it, right? All he had to do was just sit down somewhere nice and quiet so he could wrap up his report and then--oh shit, Nines was already in the Break Room chatting up a storm with four other androids sitting around him in a small circle.

They’d pulled two tables together and were conversing like they were the best of friends, but then again, Gavin supposed these were the members of the narcotics unit and task force team Nines led…right?

No…they couldn’t have been! Gavin had never seen these androids before, and he couldn’t recognize a single one of them. As he was gripped and held firmly by wild curiosity, he casually gazed around the room, making it appear as if he was looking for something when he was trying to observe the small horde surrounding Nines.

He saw soon that the androids all had I.D. cards and nametags around their necks that read out the words: **Officer in Training**.

Aha! Just as he suspected, these were the newest recruits. But since when did Nines train them? This was certainly new…

His thoughts soon had been interrupted when the female android directly facing him in the small circle looked up and saw him. She had shortly-cut, light brown hair, soft brown eyes, pink plump lips, and she appeared to be the friendliest out of the bunch. Her nametag read: ‘Kelly’.

She waved at him excitedly, “Hey there! Are you okay?”

At once, the other three androids around her stared up at Gavin, followed last by Nines. The latter merely sneered before turning away and staring across the Break Room coldly.

Gavin wished she hadn’t done this, as all eyes were now on him, no doubt assessing him, scanning him, observing him closely…shit…

“Umm…h-hey…guys?” he offered painfully in the way of a greeting, hoping it would be good enough to render the other androids-who were all males-from staring at him with wide eyes. They each had a different appearance, and a different personality just from the way they stared at him alone.

The android seated to Kelly’s right also had brown hair, but it was a few shades darker than hers, and he had soft-black eyes. He had light brown, soft-looking skin, and his lips were thin and slightly pale-looking, but he seemed friendly as well while a small smile formed on his face. His name was apparently ‘Joe’.

The android on Kelly’s left seemed a little less moody than Nines, but he nodded curtly at Gavin. He had short black hair and light blue eyes, thick eyebrows, and a yellow (cautious) LED light. His name was ‘Phil’.

And finally, an android seated to Nines’ right also waved at Gavin, and he had honey-colored hair and round eyes that were almost the same shade, with little freckles dancing along his slightly tanned skin. His name was ‘Dom’.

Apparently, Gavin’s presence had tested Nines’ patience a lot. Drumming his fingers along the clean surface of the table, he spat out, “Detective Reed, you’re interrupting us.”

Kelly let out a tiny squeal, “Your wedding was beautiful!!!” she sighed as she looked at them both, “it’s a shame we were unable to attend the ceremony!”

Gavin and Nines both froze up. Of course the androids had heard and read about the wedding; half the world likely knew about it. But it was odd how they all assumed it was legitimate, though Gavin was under the assumption that anyone outside the DPD likely wasn’t in on the whole plot and had no idea it was indeed a fake marriage.

Dom’s LED light blinked blue, “Oh, so you two met and got together from work, huh?”

Nines nodded, “Unfortunately so, Detective Reed is now a part of my narcotics and ‘Slo-Freeze’ task force team.”

Kelly gasped, “I’ve read a lot about Slo-Freeze and Ouroboros!” she clasped her hands together as she looked back and forth between Gavin and Nines, “it’s apparently one of the most dangerous drugs out there, and very easy to get your hands on!”

Nines, Dom, and Phil all nodded in agreement.

Suddenly feeling so left out of the conversation, Gavin cleared his throat and began to turn around, eager to make his way back to his report, and then find a much quieter place so he could finish the damn thing.

He had barely taken a few steps when Kelly rose to her feet and called out, “You’re more than welcome to join us, Detective!!”

_“Ohfuckohshitohfuckohshitohfuckohshit!!!”_

His heart began racing like a wild hare, but he slowly turned around as he struggled to come up with an excuse so he could finally leave.

“I uh…”

It appeared as if Nines was cutting to the chase for him. He sat up as he clasped his hands into fists and rested them beneath his chin. “Detective Reed is awfully busy, Kelly,” he mumbled while staring at her, “and besides, we’re—”

“You know what? I’ll take you up on your offer, Kelly,” with a smirk, he approached their table right then and there. If Nines was so eager to get him out of the way, he would remain there, just in spite of the rude RK900.

Gavin pulled out a chair from another table, and he sat himself directly across the table in front of Nines.

_“Ha! Serves you right, Nines! Now you have no choice to not only include me in your little ‘group’, but you have to do so while lookin’ right at me across from you!”_

Gavin was hardly able to keep the smug grin off his face as he sat down and crossed his legs at the ankles, stretching his feet out before him beneath the table as he got comfortable. Nines merely looked to the left side of the room, a snarl tugging at the corners of his lips.

The African American android model named Joe smiled warmly at him, “Detective Reed, right?” he offered his hand to Gavin in a handshake, and Gavin took it gladly.

“Hey.”

“How long have you known Nines, Detective?” Kelly inquired eagerly, her round eyes shining brightly as she leaned in close to Gavin.

Gavin whistled, his eyebrows rising high on his forehead. “That would be…hmm…” he rolled his eyes up to the ceiling and then sighed, “…way too damn long.”

The androids-except for Phil and Nines-burst out in laughter at this. Gavin jutted out his chin at Nines, as if to say: “haha, I’m suddenly likeable and cool!!”

Nines leaned back as he cleared his throat, “Yes well, Detective Reed is a rather ‘interesting’ specimen, and shows great promise…however…” his eyes flicked up into Gavin’s, then, “…I think he is horribly out of place here.”

Gavin’s grin broke away immediately. He knew that this was a double-edged sword that was meant to cut straight through him. Nines had not only meant he was horribly out of place among their group, but also in the narcotics unit, no doubt.

_“You sarcastic ass.”_

Dom rolled his eyes, Kelly gasped, Joe shrugged, and Phil smirked. Gavin had no idea what to say, but he felt Kelly gently placing a hand on his shoulder.

“Nines!” she hissed lightly, “that’s not a very nice thing to say to your spouse!”

Nines glared down at the ring on his finger, as if directing all his hatred and anger towards it. Gavin also peeked down at his own ring, and he wished more than anything else in the world that he could take it off and throw it down the deepest, darkest hole in the ground. He never wanted to see another wedding ring in his entire life!!

Nines waved Kelly off, “I assure you, this is a joke between Detective Reed and I; please don’t worry much.”

_“What’ll be hilarious is me kickin’ your stupid ass, eh Nines? We’ll see who’s laughing then!”_

Kelly’s hand was still on him, and Gavin gently pulled away from her. “Yeah, it’s no sweat, guys,” he stated as he awkwardly and uncomfortably avoided making eye contact with any of them, “it’s just a joke.”

Kelly didn’t seem like she believed it, but before she could say something, Nines stood up, tucked his chair into the table, and straightened out his black dress shirt coolly and collectedly. At once, the other androids stood up as well, and Kelly seemed to be the only reluctant one. She got up last, still looking down at Gavin with a worried expression painted onto her pretty face.

Nines cleared his throat, “Now then,” he began in an authoritative tone of voice, “we shall continue with our tour of the precinct, as well as a question and answer period before the day is through.”

The androids lined up nicely behind him, eagerly waiting for him to lead the way.

Nines held out a hand, “Shall we?”

Their footsteps soon moved out of the Break Room, and as Gavin looked up to watch them leave, he saw Nines hanging back for a moment. Before he could look away, Nines turned to peek over his shoulder down at Gavin, and their eyes met in an instant.

Gavin scowled at him, and Nines did nothing except return the heated scowl with one of his own. The way Nines glared at him sent shivers up Gavin’s spine, as it was a horribly ugly look he’d never seen on Nines before.

It appeared that even in silence, Nines was always trying to ‘best’ him, and win against him. Not only were his insults wittier, more pointed, and crueler, but so were his glares, now. Perhaps it was time to admit and accept that there wasn’t any winning against Nines…

Nines sneered at him, as if somehow hearing his internal thoughts.

“Good day to you, Detective Reed.”

Once he’d watched Nines leave, making his way towards his group as he led them down the halls to the right, Gavin slammed a hand down on the table he was still seated at. His entire day had been ruined; his mood had gone to shit, and he was emotionally drained beyond belief.

And this was all thanks to one thing Nines had said.

“Fuck you too then, Nines.”

It sucked even more that the blasted RK900 wasn’t even there to hear his insult.

Son of a bitch!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we are finally introduced to a few new characters who are going to play their own separate roles later, but they're mostly the new recruits for the narcotics team Nines leads! I like Kelly a lot out of the bunch! She seems to understand Gavin a lot *hugs!*


	11. Strawberry-Vanilla Cake

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy. I am sure a lot of people are gonna hate me after they read this chapter.

Gavin angrily held his phone in his hands as he shoved the shopping cart before him violently. After his work day, he’d taken a taxi to the nearest supermarket he could find, and he began shopping for the items he needed to restock Nines’ fridge with.

Sure, he’d been less than chuffed to have to go grocery shopping straight after work instead of having a rest first. Sure, he’d been upset with the fact that he was unable to locate the brand of milk he loved pouring into his coffee. Of course, he’d been angry that the shopping cart he’d so brutally shoved forward had nearly slammed into a woman’s backside while she had been trying to attend to a nagging, whining toddler as they both took up the entire space of the isle he’d been trying to get into, and definitely, he was pissed with the fact that he nearly slipped and fell onto his ass by not carefully reading the: **CAUTION! WET FLOOR!** sign that’d been laid out across the front of the isle ahead of him.

Most importantly, Gavin was pissed and beyond irate with the fact that Nines had majorly damaged his ego.

Of course, it wasn’t as if people who were close to him hadn’t informed him of the fact that he had a massive-sized ego, but that wasn’t it! How dare it be Nines who had reduced him and degraded him into feeling lower than dirt??? If Connor or Hank had insulted him, he’d just easily brush it off like dust on furniture. But Nines?? Nines was an entirely different story. No matter what he’d done, Gavin just couldn’t let it go or forget how easy it was for Nines to rip into him.

_“And he destroyed my ego in front of four other people…err…androids, too!”_

Nothing was worse than being mocked and judged by a bunch of machines-especially new recruits! Now that Nines had lit the fires of ‘let’s-shit-on-Detective-Reed’, Gavin was certain that the other androids would follow in his footsteps and harass him any chance they got!

Well…except for Kelly. He really didn’t see Kelly as the bullying type, and she was a lot kinder than the others!

Well…Dom seemed kinda cool, too, and he was always smiling and laughing at him, and—oh fuck it! None of the androids were horrible, evil monsters! It was just his own stupid ‘husband’ that was the problem; not the other androids! He’d just been taking out his frustrations inappropriately, and he’d just associated ‘jerkhoodness’ with the androids only because Nines was a big jerk! But that didn’t mean the rest of them were as well!

Gavin grumbled and mumbled all sorts of profanities directed at Nines while he pushed his shopping cart down the ‘snacks and pasta’ isle. He didn’t care that he was stocking up on junk food and unhealthy crap; he was just livid and a raging ball of fire inside.

His hand reached out along the shelf, and Gavin hurriedly swiped into his cart spaghetti noodles, ramen noodles, popcorn, and some eggrolls. That was enough for this isle, and he moved over towards the ‘frozen-food’ section.

“Fuckin’ asshole Nines,” he spat out angrily as he viciously yanked open the freezer doors and shoved his hands around inside.

“Who the hell does he think he is anyway? Mockin’ me and shit in front of everyone! Pathetic son of a bitch!!”

Gavin pulled out two packages of frozen pizza, macaroni, ice-cream, frozen pierogies, and one package of frozen shawarma. He dumped them all into his cart and kicked the freezer door closed, turning to make his way out of the frozen-food section, when his eyes caught sight of frozen cake as well.

He nearly slapped himself for being so forgetful.

“Stupid Nines!” he hissed, “makin’ me forget everythin’ and act all weird and crazy all the time!”

Gavin tore open the freezer door once again, and he felt the icy-cold blast from the freezer snap onto his fingers while he reached around for the cake. There were only two kinds left: chocolate, and strawberry-vanilla. Hell yeah he was going to pick strawberry-vanilla!

His hands reached for the cake, and Gavin grunted as he felt more cold air hitting him in the chin.

“Why should I have to even do the shopping??” he whispered to himself as he snatched the cake into his hands finally, “I get that I’m the one eatin’ it, but it’s _his_ fuckin’ house, _his_ fuckin’ fridge! This is _his_ job!!”

Gavin nearly laughed at himself. “As if!” he snorted while a package of home-made frozen burgers clattered down at the bottom of the freezer, “if I leave it to Nines, the maniac will probably never get any food, and he’ll be more than happy to see me waste away and starve to death!!”

It was something that-while horrible and evil in thought-Gavin found he just couldn’t put it past Nines to even give two shits whether he ate or not.

“He just loves seein’ me suffer,” Gavin spat out before the frozen food while his fingers extended towards the delicious-looking cake.

He huffed, “Why do I even care to think about what kind of a son of a bitch he really is, anyway??”

_“More importantly; why the hell am I yappin’ to myself like a psychotic nut in the middle of a jam-packed grocery store?!?”_

People around him must’ve thought he was crazy, but he shrugged it off as he held the cake up to his eyes.

“Awesome.”

As Gavin turned around and placed it on the messy pile of food in his cart, he rammed his body roughly into someone’s back. One-by-one, the items the person had been carrying clattered to the floor, landing all over Gavin in a huge mess. Thankfully, whatever the individual had been meaning to buy had mostly been in packages, cans, and little boxes, and didn’t spill or explode everywhere.

Gavin groaned as his cake rolled underneath the freezer.

_“And that was the last of the strawberry-vanilla flavors, too…”_

He’d already had a shitty day at the DPD, but now? Now he was beyond livid. With his cake now gone, all Gavin wanted to do was beat the shit out of the person he’d bumped into.

He leapt up to his feet and shoved the shopping cart aside. “Thanks, jackass,” he spat angrily at the man’s back, “way to be a klutz!”

The man was a few inches taller than he was, and he was wearing a grey sweatshirt. Once he turned around, Gavin froze. He recognized this man…he did…oh god this face was familiar!

The letters **UDM** were in gold colored font in the center of the grey sweatshirt. The man was wearing black track pants with white stripes running down the sides of his legs, white running shoes, and he had a light brown stubble on his face. His cheeks were slightly red, and his skin was half a shade darker than Gavin’s. He had more muscle, and his arms bulked out like he’d recently come out of the gym. He had dark green eyes, and short, wavy dirty-blonde hair.

His jaw fell open as soon as his eyes registered Gavin standing before him.

“Gavin Reed??”

Woah…so this man recognized him, as well?!

The man laughed in shock, “Holy shit!! Gavin Reed!” he pointed at Gavin, then, “by god, it really _is_ you!!”

This man who Gavin was gaping openly at was none other than Raoul Spencer. Raoul had been something of a thorn in Gavin’s side for the first few years of their time spent in police academy. Raoul was a bully back in the day, and his tormenting of Gavin never ended-until he’d transferred right out of the police academy and instead began attending University of Detroit Mercy. Gavin had never seen Raoul ever again, and frankly, he’d never wanted to. Why should he have been curious about what one of his most hated and annoying bullies had been up to since their early twenties???

It appeared as if Raoul’s life had gone over quite well; he must’ve joined a sports team at the University of Detroit, for he was wearing a varsity shirt of some kind while also having doubled two times his size in mass and width. He appeared to have a healthier diet as well, only having collected soup cans, fresh vegetables, fruits, and a slab of fresh steak.

Gavin immediately was jealous, and he remembered why he’d hated this son of a bitch back in the day. Raoul looked like he could afford to live and eat well, and it pissed Gavin right off as he glared at his food items.

Trying to collect his own junk food (and dignity) up off the floor, Gavin snarled as he gathered everything and anything he could into his chest and dumped the items back into his shopping cart.

Bending down, Raoul picked up one of the pizza packages, “Do you remember me?”

Gavin hissed out finally, “Of course I do! You’re Raoul Spencer!”

This seemed to have impressed the other man somehow, and he grinned proudly while Gavin snatched his frozen pizza out of his hands and threw it carelessly back into his cart.

“I didn’t think you’d remember me,” Raoul stated while smiling from ear-to-ear, “I went to University pretty early on, I guess.”

_“Good for you, Mr. Perfection!”_

Gavin grunted, “That’s nice…” He really didn’t give a shit; he just wanted to be as far away from Raoul as possible. The last thing he needed in order to add more ‘spice’ to his shitty day was for a previous bully to come back waltzing into his life and rubbing all his wonderful things in his face.

Raoul seemed like he was in the mood for a chat, and he smiled down at Gavin as he watched him reorganize the items in his cart quickly. “Did you ever manage to finish up your police training?” he asked gently while he reached into Gavin’s cart and stacked the popcorn to lay flatly on the pizza packages.

Gavin fumed both internally and externally. “Yeah, I did…what about you?” he shot Raoul a nasty look, but it merely rolled off the other man’s shoulders as he smiled.

“I graduated with my MBA, actually, and then I went back a few months ago to obtain a graduate certificate in Forensic Accounting!”

Lovely. So not only was Raoul taller, stronger, and richer than him, but he was also smarter, now.

Feeling highly insulted, Gavin felt himself flushing as he turned away from Raoul and peeked under the freezer. He wanted his cake, sure, but that was only half of the reason why he avoided looking at Raoul; he just was too fucking mortified to even think straight, and feared lashing out at the man in public.

Raoul chuckled, though it didn’t seem to be in a cruel manner. “Looking for something?”

Gavin sighed, “My cake. My fuckin’ cake is gone.”

Raoul stared at the freezer, eyes landing on the chocolate cake. “There’s one more left!”

“I wanted that strawberry-vanilla one,” he groused, “it’s gone and that was the last one.”

In a split second, Raoul moved the cart out of his way, “I’ll get it for you, Reed, don’t worry.”

“No that’s fine, you don’t have to—”

Before he could protest further, Raoul bent down and slid his long arms beneath the freezer. He shifted effortlessly, sliding his face right up against the bottom of the large freezer while trying to reach for the cake.

_“There’s no chance in hell that he’ll be able to grab it—”_

“Got it!” Raoul happily cheered, moving backwards as he brought the cake up with him.

_“Well…shit…”_

He proudly offered the cake to Gavin, and the other male took it reluctantly. He didn’t want to say ‘thank you’ and be slightly indebted to his ex-bully, but it seemed that was the way it was going when Raoul smirked at him.

“We should catch up some time, Reed,” he said warmly, “why don’t you let me take you for a cup of coffee or something?”

Feeling his internal organs recoiling, Gavin let out a shocked cry. “I umm…I…”

“Hey! What the hell, dad??” They’d been interrupted by a slightly high-pitched young voice.

As Gavin and Raoul spun around, they gazed upon a young boy no older than twelve or thirteen years old. He had light-colored eyes that were somewhere between green and blue in shade, and had golden blonde hair. He was wearing a Tony Stark t-shirt and black shorts with sneakers. It didn’t take Gavin too long to piece together that this was Raoul’s son…he had a son?!?!?

The boy glowered up at his father, “You told me you would be back soon!”

Chuckling, Raoul walked up to his son and rubbed his head. “Sorry about that, Paul,” he nodded over at Gavin, “I accidentally ran into an old friend…well,” he chuckled again, “technically, _he_ ran into me!”

Gavin forced himself to close his jaw, before either Raoul or ‘Paul’ noticed he was gaping at them.

Raoul caught his look at the last minute before he switched it into an uncomfortable one, and he pointed at his son. “Oh! I’m sorry for not introducing ‘trouble’ to you, Reed!” he pet his son’s shoulders, giving him a little shake, “this is my son, Paul!”

Gavin nodded, “Hey.”

The young boy waved back, “Hey…Reed?”

“Well, you can call me Gavin, I guess?”

The kid merely grunted, “How do you know my dad?”

Raoul gently rubbed his back, “We used to go to school together for a bit.”

“Oh…” Paul then looked up at his dad, and he shifted as if he had to urinate. “Dad, can we go now? I gotta pee!”

Gavin rolled his eyes.

“Alright son, just a moment,” Raoul said, and Paul quickly turned and walked down another isle, humming to himself as he disappeared between the large shelves.

Turning to Gavin once again, Raoul gave him a polite smile. “So what’s changed in your life?”

Gavin shrugged, “Clearly not as much as yours! Never knew you were married.”

A faint blush appeared on Raoul’s cheeks, suddenly. “Actually, I just got divorced,” he corrected, and Gavin bit down on his tongue.

_“Yikes…as it turns out, I just got married!! What’re the coincidences, eh??”_

While Raoul held his head down, as if shameful of having gone through a divorce, his eyes caught the golden ring on Gavin’s finger.

“Hey!” he cried out as he flicked a finger at it, “you’re married?”

Alarm bells suddenly went off in Gavin’s mind. How was it that Raoul didn’t know about his wedding? Strangely, the androids new to the DPD even knew about it, for that matter, even though most androids often didn’t pay attention to the news as much as humans did! Surely Raoul must’ve received some news about it, considering how it was a very widely announced wedding!

He cleared his throat, “Well…yeah…just recently tied the knot,” his eyes turned a little dark and squinted at Raoul, “I’m shocked you didn’t really know about it.”

Raoul merely waved it off, “I had a lot to deal with in regards to my own separation, and I was living in Alabama for a while with my wife at the time.”

Oh.

Well, it was a reason as good as any, but Gavin still found it a bit strange, nonetheless.

_“Well, my life can’t revolve around everyone else’s, so maybe that’s why he never heard of my marriage to begin with.”_

Going with that as a good, logical reason, Gavin gripped his shopping cart and made to push it by Raoul, when the man stepped up right beside him.

“Who’s the lucky woman, Reed?”

Well, now _this_ was indeed a tricky, messy dilemma he was caught in.

From the looks of it, Raoul Spencer appeared to be a clean-cut, All-American ‘straight-as-a-doornail’ heterosexual male. He’d never bullied anyone-or Gavin-for being a homosexual, but Gavin really had no idea how Raoul would take the news that he had recently gotten married to a man…and an _android_ no less!

_“Okay, maybe he doesn’t need to know I’m married to an android…yeah, I’ll leave that part out of it!”_

Knowing Raoul was waiting for his answer, Gavin stared on ahead at the isle Paul had disappeared into. “I’m actually m-married to a g-guy, Spencer,” he breathed out calmly as possible.

Raoul’s eyes widened a little, but then a small smile broke out onto his face. “I’ll admit; I never saw that one coming!” he laughed a little while scratching at the back of his head.

 _“Yeah me neither,”_ he thought to himself, _“there’s nothing worse than just coming to terms with your homosexuality, and then being married off to the bane of your existence!!”_

Raoul still kept smiling at Gavin while they turned away from the freezers.

“I hope I can maybe meet him one day,” Raoul announced, smiling even wider at the idea, “I’m sure you guys are pretty happy together and all that!”

Eyeing Paul’s little head poking out from the side of the isle, Gavin sighed, “Well I’m kinda busy these days, Raoul.”

_“In other words, just fuck off, back off, and leave me the hell alone already!!”_

Nodding, Raoul waved his son over, and the little boy practically skittered feverishly over to his father. “I understand everything there is to know about being busy, Reed,” Raoul stated softly, “I mean, you’re telling me! It’s crazy when you’re a parent, too!”

Gavin shrugged, “I guess,” he quickly turned the cart to the left, making a clean break for the self-checkout center in the store. “I don’t mean to be rude, Spencer,” he grumbled out, “but I gotta head home.”

Raoul merely winked playfully at him, “Husband worries a lot? Or does he get jealous, haha!”

Gavin wanted nothing more than to bash Raoul’s face in. He had no idea what the hell he was saying, though Gavin couldn’t blame him; he didn’t know the truth of the matter, and never would. Still, he didn’t like that he was caught having to even mention having a ‘husband’ in front of an ex-bully. It just made his skin crawl…

“Daaaaad,” Paul whined as he kicked his feet along the floors, “I wanna go!!”

Raoul gently pushed on his back, “We’re leaving, kiddo.”

_“Thank god! It was about time!!”_

Trying not to reveal how happy he was to finally be alone again, Gavin threw his items onto the self-checkout machine. It beeped and began weighing his items as it calculated the costs once the barcodes were scanned on each product.

Raoul did the same thing, and since he had fewer items than Gavin did, his shopping was finished faster, and he paid for the purchases quickly while Paul fidgeted and ran around stacks of boxes and rows of shopping carts in little circles.

Feeling he was being watched, Gavin turned his head, and he saw Raoul waving at him while ushering his son down the self-checkout isle.

“Well Reed,” he stated with a small half-chuckle, “I’m glad I ran into ya!”

“You mean I ran into you!” Gavin hissed dully.

Raoul laughed again happily, “Right!” his son was already speeding past the automatic sliding doors.

“See you later, Reed! Hope I’ll catch you around maybe!!”

_“I hope you won’t!!!!!”_

With another wave of a hand, Raoul was gone as well.

Sighing as he carried his bags towards the exit, Gavin heard the distant rumbling of thunder high above in the skies. It seemed like it was taunting him as he lugged his purchases around with him, and he grabbed his phone after remembering that he had to call another stupid taxi to take him back to Nines’ mansion.

Fuckin’ asshole android!!!!!

He almost willingly threw his cake into the parking lot when the first raindrops pattered down, beating over his head harshly while he huddled in a corner outside the grocery store, waiting for his ride.

What a day.

What a lovely day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact, Raoul is meant to look like Heath Ledger ;)  
> and yes, the University of Detroit Mercy does indeed offer the programs Raoul was talking about majoring in. I did my research, my mans! HUG ME NOW!!


	12. PSA

Good afternoon everyone!

Just popping in to say hello, ask how you all are, and to deliver a quick PSA message.

Please, PLEASE (I ask very nicely), don’t tell me how to write my work, don’t tell me what segments of my work make sense and which parts don’t, because I have chosen to write my work a certain way and in a certain style, and it is my own way.

This fic especially is marked as COMEDY. This is one of the tags. The purpose of it is to be funny and exaggerate the heck out of stuff.

I’m only taking time to say this because a few people seem to believe and feel that the wedding and union between Nines and Gavin was forced and came out of nowhere. I respect your views, but at this point, it should be obvious WHY they were forced to wed.

Here are some reasons, to name a few.

  * Gavin would never consent willingly to having an around-the-clock bodyguard from nowhere. He was even refusing to leave his apartment in chapter one, even though it had been broken into. Fowler had to do something extreme in order to get him to go along with this plot.
  * Nines and Gavin wouldn’t hang out willingly since they hated each other, and Nines wouldn’t just up and protect Gavin at work or after work for NO reason or NO incentive. The whole point of their marriage is so Gavin lives with Nines and is seen as his spouse, and people normally protect and cherish their spouse lol that was the whole point for the gang.
  * Nines would be able to better protect Gavin in a ‘marriage’ because Fowler knows if he forces them into such a situation, there is a high probability of them becoming emotionally connected and able to form a BOND.



These were my most obvious reasons, but if some people feel it STILL makes no sense, that’s totally okay, but this is my work, and I chose to write it this way. Please, I ask again nicely, if it isn’t to your liking, don’t take time out of your day to say so; just click on to another fic!

 

Thank you!

Avixi


	13. A Few Discoveries

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bickering and immaturity up ahead :D

Gavin’s hair and clothes were beyond drenched and soaked by the time the taxi dropped him off in the double-garage driveway of the mansion. Water trickled off his hair and slid down the back of his shirt, gliding over his skin like ice spreading across a winter land. It made him seize up, and his teeth clattered together horribly as he shivered.

What the heck was with this weather in this time of the early summer?! Unbelievable how windy and how cold it was!! He supposed it was as unpredictable as life, though, and he laughed off the minor existential and philosophical thoughts that troubled him as collected his bearings.

Gavin hurriedly paid the taxi driver his due fee, and holding the groceries tightly, he held the bags above his head like a makeshift umbrella as he stood on the front porch of the house. It only occurred to Gavin as he stared at the door handle that he didn’t even have a key…lovely. That meant he’d have to beg Nines to make him a copy, no doubt…that was even _if_ his dumbass of a husband allowed it.

Wonderful.

Gavin rang the doorbell and waited beneath the light hanging to the left of the front door, and within minutes, the door squeaked open.

An angry-looking Nines stood before him, then, opening the screen door as he sneered at Gavin standing in the pouring rain.

“Wonderful, Detective Reed,” he spat icily, “only someone as dense as yourself would be far too busy with your meager social obligations you foolishly label as ‘activities’, than be bothered to check the weather forecast.”

Ignoring him before he lost it, Gavin brushed past Nines and kicked off his wet sneakers. He didn’t care that they squelched disgustingly on the clean hard-wood floors; he was beyond caring about the mess he’d made right now.

Nines leered at Gavin’s shoes lying half-strewn-half-sprawled over a few rain boots. Puddles formed beneath them, and it was enough to send the neat and orderly android into a frenzy. He tore after Gavin, both their feet thundering in the halls as Gavin approached the large fridge.

He threw his groceries down next to him as he tugged the doors open and tried to find out where he could stuff the food.

Nines stood behind him, fuming so much and so hard that Gavin could’ve sworn he’d been able to feel two little holes burning in the back of his skull. Regardless, he ignored Nines, and moved to the freezer, grabbing the ice-cream and making room for it beneath some ice-packs and frozen beans and snow peas.

He snorted at them before snapping at Nines, “You think I’m gonna ever get around to eating this shit?”

Nines hummed in deep thought, “It doesn’t matter anyway when you’re going to carelessly spend money on that kind of poisonous sludge you deem ‘edible food’, does it?”

_“Again with the sarcasm…”_

Gavin just shrugged as he stuffed the pizza boxes in the freezer next, and then shut the door by kicking his leg against it. The freezer compartment rattled, and the entire fridge shook a little, causing Nines to raise an angry eyebrow at Gavin as his LED light turned yellow.

Gavin brushed his hands on his pants and stared at Nines, “What? What did I do, now?”

Nines couldn’t help but spit out, “Just you breathing in oxygen is reason enough for my displeasure, Detective Reed.”

Gasping as he slapped his hands up and rested them upon his cheeks, Gavin mimicked the famous artwork by Edvard Munch titled ‘The Scream’. A copy of the wondrous, infamous piece had been placed on one of the kitchen walls behind the pot and pan rack, and it was the first thing Gavin’s eyes caught on to, and he felt it definitely matched how he felt about this situation.

He struck the pose; jaw hanging obscenely and widely open, while his eyes bugged out and turned into small saucers, practically. Whether Nines realized what it was he’d meant to mimic or otherwise was immaterial…well, Nines didn’t stick around long enough to care, anyway. He immediately backed off, turning around as he breezed past counters and cupboards, no doubt heading for his office.

The way he was so cold about everything made Gavin seethe with anger on the inside. Sadly, he was unable to stay silent for long, and he yelled out at Nines, “You’re pathetic!!”

Not even bothering to turn around, Nines replied back, “No, Detective Reed, I’m sorry to differ with you, but the pathetic one would be yourself, seeing as you have yet to finalize and submit your report to Captain Fowler…”

_“Holy god motherfucking damn shit balls ass tits dicks!! He’s right!!!”_

Gavin bit down hard on the insides of his cheeks as he let out a slow sigh, counted to three, curled his toes against the floor, and felt searing hot pain running inside his mouth.

Perhaps he shouldn’t have bitten his cheeks so hard, but Nines was _so_ god damn insufferable!! How was _anyone_ supposed to communicate-let alone work-around such a smarmy bastard?! It was impossible!!

Still, Gavin managed to keep his anger in check, and all he did was crack a few of his knuckles while shrugging at Nines. “I was gonna work on it, Nines,” he groused moodily, “but you and your posse decided to just be bitches to me in the Break Room, and ya’ll broke my concentration!”

There! That was a good way to put it, and he waited with a little smug expression on his face for Nines to come up with an argument against that.

It seemed as if Nines had already somehow anticipated and been prepared for Gavin’s argument, and he grinned a horribly cruel grin that was all teeth. “Consider yourself lucky, Detective Reed,” he spat poisonously, “that incident could’ve gone over a lot worse…especially for yourself.”

Gavin gasped again, “Ooooh, was that a threat, Nines?” he pretended to shiver, “scary!!!”

“Whether you feel it was a threat or it wasn’t is irrelevant, Detective Reed, considering how your entire life is comprised of insignificance and mediocrity smothering you at every angle,” the android cut to the chase directly, making sure to jab at Gavin with plenty of insults throughout.

Gavin waved him off nonchalantly, “Your insults are silly, Nines,” he snickered, “gonna have to try harder than that!”

“I don’t have to ‘try’, Detective,” came the cold drawl of a reply, “I can see you’re already affected, otherwise, why even bother engaging in this ridiculous banter with me?”

Gavin clasped his hands together beneath his head and closed his eyes, snoring lightly as he pretended his head was upon a makeshift pillow. He yawned, opened one eye, and then hissed out, “Shoot! I fell asleep! What’d I miss?”

Nines’ eyes narrowed into dangerous slits. “You’re an incorrigible, recalcitrant brat, Detective.”

Once he’d stated this, Gavin fluttered his eyelashes at Nines, and he bounced up to him, balancing himself on the tip of his toes before he stopped right in front of Nines. The tall android glared down at him like a giant towering before a meager man, but Gavin wasn’t deterred by this. He reached out with an index finger, and he flicked it forward into Nines’ nose using his thumb and the tip of his finger.

“Guess what, Nines?” he giggled playfully, but with an edge of sarcasm clinging onto it, “I’m rubber, and you’re glue, and whatever you say bounces off me, and ends up right back on youuuuuu!!!”

His husband merely stared at him with an unimpressed frown on his face, as his LED light turned to red. “I’m surprised you didn’t pontificate on that further, Detective,” Nines stated with a grimace as he leaned away from Gavin and sniffed, as if his nose had instantly caught some illness or disease from physical contact bestowed upon it from Gavin.

Gavin winked, still playful, but trying to stay on the path of caution, just in case his crazy husband decided to go all homicidal on his ass…not literally.

“Oh staaahhp it, yooouuu,” Gavin crooned, slamming his elbow into Nines’ sternum. The blasted brick wall of an android unfortunately didn’t move an inch, and Gavin frowned when he tried it again.

Yep. Nines wasn’t moving. His feet must’ve been planted firmly into a special compartment built into the floor or something.

Staring down at the floor so he could locate said special compartment, Gavin hummed as his brows furrowed on his forehead.

Nines sighed tiredly, “Are you quite finished now?”

Gavin snapped back up to attention. “Yep! All done.” This was too awkward, and he was still soaking wet and in dire need of a shower…a hot shower…yesssss.

Nines nodded, “Now, if you’ll excuse me, Detective, I’m going to have to leave, before you scream at me.”

“Huh?”

Nines scowled, “I took the liberty of submitting our ‘report’ because you weren’t inclined to complete it.”

This time, Gavin lost it. He shoved Nines hard in the chest, despite knowing he wouldn’t move an inch.

“God damn it, Nines!! I fuckin’ told you to wait!!!” his screams were ignored, and Nines merely clasped his hands behind his back as he glared down at his short husband.

“If you wanted to submit your version of the events, Detective, you should’ve completed it much earlier…” he snickered, “after all, you had plenty of time.”

Gavin pointed a finger into his chin angrily, “You cheated!” he screamed, his voice hitting every corner of the kitchen and sending Shelley peeking curiously around the corner from Nines’ work office at what all the chaos and commotion was all about. Her little eye-slit narrowed at them, and her light turned a cautious orange.

“…you used your stupid android mental power bullshit…thing!!” Gavin’s cheeks were aflame, but he couldn’t stop screaming. How could Nines do this to him?!?! Was he purposefully trying to mess everything up?!

Nines rolled his eyes, “There’s no need to shout in my home, Detective; I gave you plenty of chances to work on your report, but you have no one else to blame for your incompetence, once again.”

Gavin shook his head, “Stop being such a two-timing asshole!! You said I could work on the damn thing!!”

Nines frowned, “I know what I said, Detective,” he snarled, then, “I don’t need you to give me your bastardized version of the events,” he finished as he spat out obliquely.

“Then why did you ruin my report?!”

“I didn’t,” Nines grumbled out hurriedly, “I merely wrapped it up and submitted it with your name and my own attached to it, so it appears as if we worked on it together.”

Gavin groaned as he gripped his hair strands in his fingers and yanked on them while turning around. Shelley ducked behind the wall again, though her antenna tail stuck out, a sign that she was still listening in on the couple arguing away in the kitchen.

When his throat burned and stung from groaning and screaming, Gavin felt his wet clothes sticking to his body as it tried warming itself up, and he shivered as he draped his arms around himself. He needed that bath, now. To hell with Nines and the blasted report. If he wanted to finish it on his own, fine. So be it.

When it came to matters of screaming and arguments, Gavin loved the challenge to dominate and beat the other person, but for now, his health and comfort overpowered this need, and he wanted nothing more than to shrug out of his damp clothes and hit the shower.

As if sensing his desires, Nines rolled his eyes and rubbed his forehead. “Have a bath, Detective,” he turned around, and before he could face his office, Shelley withdrew her tail back into her body and hid.

“Before you go to bed, however,” Nines began, leaning half-way into his office while still peering over at Gavin, “I need to speak with you about the lab results regarding the autopsy of the suspect.”

Gavin froze, all the blood rushing to his head for a moment, and then pooling down into his stomach. He’d soon forgotten about his bath, and he ran over and gripped Nines by the front of his shirt collar.

Yanking his husband close to his face, Gavin gaped at him with wide eyes.

Nines was taken aback, and he gasped as he gripped Gavin’s hands in his own and pried his fingers off his clothes.

“Sweet Circe, Detective!” he motioned at Gavin’s face, “you’re as pale as my walls!” he gave Gavin a semi-rough push, “get to your bath!”

Stubbornly, Gavin shook his head as he swiped at Nines. “No! You tell me now what’s going on!!”

Noticing him trembling, Nines gripped his forearm, and he spun Gavin around and pointed down the halls.

“We will discuss it later, Detective,” he snarled angrily, “for now, you must leave, as you’re getting water all over my floors.”

_“Fuck your floors!!!”_

Unfortunately, when his fingertips turned a little blue, Gavin decided to hold back on his insults and arguments, and he shivered all the way up the stairs until he’d reached the large bathroom. His health really did come first, and he was far too tired to summon up the energy to argue with Nines…for now.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

The shower was so warm, cozy, comfortable, and perfect, that Gavin hardly wanted to exit the steamy bathroom. And what a grand bathroom it was, indeed. Two large chandeliers hung from the high ceiling, beaming brightly and warming up the cream-colored walls of the lovely, steamy room nicely in all the right ways.

The standing shower could’ve easily held at least four people within it, and it was perfect for relaxation. A lovely and comfortable shower bench had been built into it, with a large assortment of shampoos, conditioner, body wash, and bubble bath containers. Each of them had a fruity-name and an even more amazing fruity-smell that sent Gavin into a frenzy as he sat and just allowed the water to warm up his sore bones and muscles for nearly fifteen minutes straight.

Grey stones served as the walls of the shower, and the floor was made up of expensive tiles that were also grey and had a dash of off-white. Gavin felt the waters pooling around his toes, and he massaged every ache and sore in his body until he was able to stand up.

He quickly washed himself off and shampooed his hair, noticing that it’d taken well over twenty-four minutes for his shower to complete. Oh well. Not his fault. He blamed Nines for having such wonderful lighting, perfect walls, floors, a good sense of style, fancy plants and decorations strewn about the bathroom…how could he want to ever leave such a wonderful place?

Gavin had stood about in the center of the bathroom, admiring and studying the beautiful pottery placed around the room on little golden stands, when he heard a little ‘bleeeeep!’.

It was no doubt Shelley, waiting on the other side of the closed and locked bathroom door. She likely had been sent up to remind him to get his ass moving and join his annoying husband downstairs to discuss the gang member’s autopsy.

He didn’t want to get moving, but he eventually grabbed one fluffy, white large towel from the shelves on the walls and dried himself off, hurriedly dressing in a loose, white gauze lanai shirt, and grey baggy, loose cotton linen summer shorts. He ruffled his hair, shaking the rest of the water out of it, and it stood out somewhat frizzy, but he didn’t care. It was good enough, and he figured he was already going to receiving a scolding for being ‘late’.

As Gavin descended the steps and eventually made his way over into the drawing room where Nines was seated in the same red chair he’d first found him in upon spending his first night in the large house, he noticed that Nines had rested a clenched fist under his chin, and his LED light was yellow as he stared into the turned off fireplace, deep in thought.

Gavin cleared his throat to announce his presence, and Nines glared up at him, clearly in a terrible mood as his LED light switched red.

“Detective Reed,” he growled angrily, “how kind of you to eventually grace me with your presence after keeping me waiting for nearly an hour.”

Gavin felt himself growing beet red in the face, but he kept his mouth shut as he heard Shelley whirring into the drawing room and waiting behind him like an eager puppy.

Nines’ cold blue eyes swept over his entire form for a moment, quietly assessing and studying him, and then Nines huffed. “Now then, if you’ve indeed taken all the time required in order for yourself to feel suitable enough to prance around, I think you should have a seat so we can discuss the reports and findings.”

_“Hahahaha, you’re such a fuckin’ comedian!!”_

He only nodded, noticing a dark-oaked wooden chair leaning against the side of the fireplace, and he grabbed it and set it down to the right of Nines and crossed one leg over the other as he folded his arms in his lap and patiently waited for Nines to begin talking.

Nines nodded back, “According to the lab results, there was a—” his eyes fell onto Shelley, and he squinted his eyes at her while she slowly hovered around the back of Gavin’s seat.

Nines let out an exhausted sigh. “Nano-Bot, leave.”

Gavin’s head whipped around, and he looked over at Shelley. “Wah!? Why? What did she do??”

With a shrug, Nines also crossed a long leg over the other down on the floor, “The Nano-Bot’s presence isn’t required here, Detective Reed.” Nines waved his hand at Shelley, and Gavin could’ve sworn she let out a small sound eerily mirroring that of a disappointed sigh before she turned around and whirred out of the room.

Gavin glared at Nines, “You’re a jerk, you know that?”

The android merely rolled his eyes. “Spare me your sentiments and feelings, Detective Reed,” he sat up in his seat and cleared his throat, “may we continue? Or have you more theatrical performances you would like to put on for me that would make any Shakespearean actor weep?”

Snorting, Gavin pointed at him, “If anything,” he began in a sarcastic drawl, “your language and manner of speaking deserves the standing ovation of the century, Nines!”

Ignoring him, Nines merely looked back at the fireplace. He had a stern look upon his face then, and Gavin knew he didn’t want to waste anymore time arguing. It was time to discuss the case and the lab results.

Nines hissed softly, “It was said that the suspect had designed a pouch of sorts into his hip where he kept the razor blade.”

Gavin froze. He was sure he knew what that meant, but he had to ask anyway, just to be sure.

“Come again?”

Nines rolled his eyes, “He crafted and carved into his skin around his hips an area to store the weapon, Detective Reed,” he groused as he glared at Gavin, “what about that is so complicated to comprehend?”

“Well it’s not every damn day you hear about people having a separate compartment into their hips where they can keep razors, Nines! Jesus!!”

Nines cut in, “Regardless, it seems the suspect had planned his own suicide the entire time, and it was irrevocably set the moment you arrested him.”

Gavin cupped his chin in one of his hands as he looked to the side, thinking about what to say next. “Could it be that this is something all the gang members are taught to do, though?” he inquired gently, hoping Nines wasn’t going to lash out at him or insult him for asking such a question, “maybe it’s how they keep all their members in line!”

Nines hummed, “I wouldn’t use the word ‘taught’, Detective, but more so ‘brainwashed’,” he tapped a finger on the armrest of his chair, “they seem to be following orders blindly and mindlessly without thinking much independently…that would only suggest…” his voice trailed off, and he shook his head and closed his eyes.

“…No, forget that.”

Gavin frowned, “Okay, so how do you expect me to ‘forget’ it when you’ve gone and made it sound so suspicious or something?!”

Nines clicked his tongue against his teeth, still refusing to look at Gavin. “Very well, Detective,” he folded his hands in his lap and sat up straighter than ever, “I truly believe that despite the fact that Ouroboros operate with majorly spread-out crime ‘cells’, they follow the orders of one, single leader.”

Gavin was silent for a moment, before he choked out a laugh he was unable to contain. Nines merely frowned at him as he turned his body slightly away from Gavin.

“It’s no laughing matter, Detective.”

Gavin held his belly as he wrapped his arms around his abdomen, still giggling. This was just hilarious!!! How could Nines even entertain such an idea?! Surely he realized how ridiculous it sounded out loud, right?

“I’m s-sorry, Nines,” he choked and wheezed out, “but you r-really expect me t-to believe that these dumb assholes respect and follow one supreme ‘King’ or some shit? Pffffffft!”

As he burst out into another round of laughter, eyes clenched tightly and little wrinkles forming in the corners as he slapped a hand over his mouth. Shaking his head as he breathed out his nose, he looked over and saw Nines frowning away at him.

The android’s lips were set in a thin line. “You may laugh all you like, Detective, but my research so far points in this direction more than you know.”

Gavin rolled his eyes up to the ceiling, “So, what?” he chuckled briefly, “are you sayin’ they’re all like worker ants and they’re following the orders of the Queen or somethin’?”

“Something like that, I reckon,” Nines explained, “as you see, they operate in different groups, but answer to one leader…”

Even though Gavin rolled his eyes and waved it off, there was a tiny, niggling feeling that began from the base of his spine and flew up through the rest of his body. He didn’t want to believe Nines’ assertions and words, but something seemed to penetrate and ring true within the back of his mind as soon as Nines had proposed his theory. But hopefully, it was nothing more than just that; a theory. Although, one could disprove a theory for certain, and that’s what Gavin was aiming to do as soon as possible.

He sat up, rubbing his forehead and then sliding his hands through his hair, combing it back as best as he could without the use of a mirror.

“Well Nines,” he chuckled as he shook his head in minor disbelief, “let me know when you find this supposed ‘leader’, okay? Then maybe I’ll believe what you have to say!”

He turned and began exiting the room when Nines drawled softly at his retreating back, “I know for a fact they have a leader…they’re not addicted to Slo-Freeze or Red Ice for this very reason,” he stated, his voice almost dying down in a whisper, “after all, how could they be addicted to narcotics and still operate in such an organized fashion that has rendered authorities and law enforcement baffled by their antics for almost a year, now?”

Gavin stopped walking, but didn’t turn around as all his ears were trained solely on the words Nines was speaking gently.

“…their leader needs their minds to be fully alert, clear, and cognizant for the brainwashing to take place, you see…” his almost snickered, eyes still on the fireplace, “I daresay, I really am eager to meet such a powerful individual,” he then looked up at the back of Gavin’s neck.

“…aren’t you feeling the same way, Detective Reed?”

As he looked back into the fireplace pit, the door to the drawing room closed with a soft click.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooo more intel on the gang!!! The plot thickens O_O


	14. Conflicting Matters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apparently (due to the research I was able to collect) a 9800-6 IS indeed Michigan Police code for a domestic dispute.

Gavin was sitting at his desk, rolling his blue ballpoint ink pen back and forth between his fingers as he rested a clenched fist against his temple. Ever since Nines had told him about his personal theories regarding a supposed ‘leader’ of Ouroboros, he hadn’t been able to sleep and eat properly. His performance at work had suffered as a result, which was why he had to forcefully be ordered by Nines to take a break while Nines and his team discussed a psychological profile on the possible leader of the gang in a meeting room just down the hall from where Gavin’s desk was located.

The door was closed, but as Gavin leaned a little forward across his desk, he saw Nines from the glass insert of the meeting room door delivering a speech and a lecture of sorts to his team. He was moving around and pointing coolly at a white board with tons of notes and photographs of victims suffering from Slo-Freeze effects on the body as he spoke on and on and on coldly. It seemed as if he had recited these words and phrases a billion times, and he was beyond bored out of his mind…

_“Guess we’re not giving the Almighty Nines something productive and exciting to do, huh?”_

He grinned slyly at his own inner musings, and then grabbed a piece of sticky-note paper and began doodling on it randomly. His hand flew up and down, and he wasn’t sure what the heck he was drawing as he trained his eyes on Nines while he kept lecturing his team.

Gavin’s fingers gripped the pen tightly, and he began drawing a random circle at the top of the sticky note as he sneered at Nines. His anger was growing, and his hand moved faster and wildly up and down on his desk as he drew and scrambled on and on.

_“Do you think you’re honestly smarter than anyone else in the DPD, Nines? Hmm?”_

His pen scratched against the sticky note, and the ink grew and grew and spread in erratic shapes on the little note paper.

 _“Well I’ve got some news here for you, Nines,”_ he pressed down a little harder than he intended to, and the paper hissed as it slid upwards along the desk. Gavin merely slid his arms up with it, eyes still cast on the glass insert of the meeting room door.

_“…when it comes right down to it, you’re just like everyone else, Nines…you’re just on our playing field, and you’re no better or worse than the rest of us.”_

He glared on at Nines while the pen skated and danced wildly along the sticky note in jerky motions, and the desk shifted and grunted when Gavin leaned forward so he could observe Nines a little more closely.

 _“I hate that we’re fuckin’ married now, too,”_ it made his blood boil knowing he was wearing a wedding ring that showed everyone who he was tied to, and it made him even more sick knowing that Nines also wore a matching one of his own.

The ring on the android’s finger gleamed and glinted at him under the lights in the meeting room, and it offended him even more than the foulest curse word someone could have thrown at him. It was like a beacon, and Gavin didn’t want to see it as he instead focused on Nines’ stern face.

 _“You look like every bit of what a hardass looks like, Nines,”_ his shoulders clenched, and he ground his teeth while his feet stomped down even harder on the floor. His pen was still flying wildly on the little sticky note.

_“You’re an asshat, and I swear, I would want nothing more than for someone to just walk right up to you and yank out every bit of your wires until they’re lying outside your stupid, stretched-out body in a crazy and blue-blooded heap.”_

Connor and Hank heard the scratching of the pen, and they turned and stared at Gavin for a few moments. Studying his arm and elbow dancing along the surface of his desk, Hank exchanged a confused look with Connor, who merely shrugged and pointed at Hank’s laptop, indicating that he should get back to work and mind his own business.

Hank rolled his eyes but went back to his work and put his headphones over his ears only when Gavin’s pen scratching grew to be too much for him to bear.

Gavin felt his fingers digging into the desk and pen as he grumbled under his breath while still drawing and observing Nines.

_“God, I wish you only knew how much I hated you, Nines…if only you knew…”_

In a split second, Nines turned his head to the right, and he peered directly out the glass insert and right across the bullpen. He was staring directly into Gavin’s blue-grey eyes, and Gavin immediately froze.

He even stopped breathing, and he felt his heart suddenly seize up like he was about to have a heart attack. Logically, he knew that wasn’t possible, as he was more fit than a butcher’s dog, but something within him caused him to just stop breathing. Gavin was certain that even the blood running in his veins had frozen up, and he couldn’t do anything but stare back at Nines.

And Nines stood just as frozen for a moment, and then there was something very odd and very alien that crept onto his face. It was an expression Gavin had no idea how to describe and attribute a description or name to. It was unlike anything he’d ever seen-not only on Nines-but also on anyone. It was a very…unearthly expression…

And then, in the next moment, it was all gone. It was as if someone had literally reset Nines’ features, and his old, taciturn, moody sneer was back on his face in an instant. His gaze taunted Gavin from the other side of the room, and Gavin felt himself growing defensive and angry once again.

Many things happened at that moment.

Gavin pressed down so hard on his ballpoint pen, that it exploded and snapped, and the sticky note tore loudly with a ‘riiiiiiiiiiip!’ that echoed at least up over to where Hank and Connor were sitting. Due to the force and pressure of how hard he’d been pressing down on the pen, now that it’d snapped, Gavin slammed his chin down hard on the surface of the desk as his arms gave out and sent him crashing onto the desk.

A horribly loud ‘SLAM!’ sounded in the bullpen, and Gavin cradled his chin as tears formed in his eyes next.

_“Kamski damn you, Nines!!”_

Nursing the pain in his chin, Gavin rubbed at the area gently, and he looked over at Nines and caught the android throwing him one final death glare before shaking his head and returning back to his lecture.

“Dick!” Gavin hissed, massaging the sore area, when he saw Connor walking over to him, eyes on the sticky note. It was torn in half, but the image was still there upon it…

Gavin’s eyes flickered down to it, and he slammed a hand down hard on the sticky note, throwing a small smile up at Connor.

“Hey buddy!” he greeted cheerfully, still rubbing his chin, “h-how’s it goin’?”

Connor’s eyebrows quirked up. “You feeling okay, Gavin?”

Gavin shrugged, “I’m fine Connor, why do you ask?”

Connor pointed at his chin with a small smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, “Because that was a pretty painful thing you did back there a second ago!”

_“Blame Nines for that one.”_

He only laughed, “Ahaha, yeah, I guess I just sometimes do things…” scratching the back of his head, Gavin saw Connor’s eyes suspiciously glance over at the tip of the torn piece of the sticky note. It was obviously covered in blue ink, and it appeared to be a round shape. But still, there was a missing piece, and Gavin had it resting and hidden away beneath his hand upon the desk.

Connor leaned into him, “Can I see what you drew?”

Snatching up the pieces, Gavin rose to his feet quickly, “Nah, you wouldn’t be interested, Connor,” he added with an uncomfortable chuckle, cheeks turning red as he collected the pieces and hid them behind his back.

“Let’s just go for a small break, okay?”

Before Connor could argue, the door of the meeting room swung open at the exact same time Captain Fowler’s office door banged open. Nines raced out to meet Captain Fowler halfway across the bullpen, and Connor and Gavin both leapt up in shock.

Nines’ team hung behind, half of the members lingering in the hall, while the others gathered in the doorway of the room they’d just had a lecture in, scratching their heads and whispering under their breath.

Captain Fowler grabbed one of Gavin’s shoulders roughly. “Reed! Thank god!” he panted like he’d been running for a day, and when Nines approached them, Captain Fowler leaned his free hand on Nines’ shoulder as well.

“Sir?” Gavin asked in a tiny voice, hoping Fowler wasn’t going to yell at him.

“A 9800-6 has just been called in, Reed,” Fowler explained, peeking over at Nines and nodding at him, too.

Gavin snorted, “So what? It’s not our call, Cap.” Why did they have to investigate a civil dispute, now?

Nines raised an eyebrow inquisitively, “I’m afraid I don’t understand either, Sir,” he looked over at his team, “the domestic crimes aren’t for—”

Fowler roared as he tugged both of them around the right-hand corner of the bullpen, away from everyone else’s eyes, and close to the front reception and entrance. A few androids on administrative duties gave them funny glances, but after Fowler cast them his infamous ‘murder glare’, they turned back to their work with frightened eyes and yellow LED lights.

Fowler leaned into both Nines and Gavin, whispering softly as he could while Gavin tried edging himself away from Nines and also trying to keep the fist that held his drawing tightly closed.

“Listen, you fools!” Fowler’s voice and breath pushed against his throat, making it seem like he was wheezing or suffering from a dry throat, and Gavin winced as he stared at his superior in slight fear.

“…I can’t run around the damn precinct screaming about Slo-Freeze being involved in the domestic dispute, and I need you both to get your asses over to the address so you can interview these people and see what they know about the drug and about Ouroboros! Got it?!?!?”

Gavin’s jaw dropped open as the nature and scope of their new task dawned on him, “Oooooh!”

Nines gave Captain Fowler a curt nod, indicating that he understood. “Detective, let’s get moving.” He grabbed Gavin’s shoulder and began pulling him towards the parking lot, when he looked down at Gavin’s hand and saw it clenched tightly around something.

“Detective?”

“Hmm?”

Captain Fowler rolled his eyes and muttered something sounding a lot like “God help them both”, then began walking back to his office quickly while Gavin turned and stared at Nines.

Noticing how the RK900 wasn’t even blinking at him, Gavin felt rather odd. “What’s the problem now, Nines?” he asked in an exasperated tone of voice.

The android pointed at his clenched fist, “Is that of any import?”

Gavin’s eyes widened a little, but he clenched his fist tighter and placed it over his chest almost protectively while shrugging apathetically, “No, Nines!” he looked at the exit, “we’re wastin’ time! Come on!!”

Knowing this was true, Nines merely brushed past Gavin, head held high as he began leading the way. Connor and Hank got back to their own work station, but the RK800 threw Gavin a weary glance that the other man ignored.

Brushing himself off with his free hand, Gavin walked down the halls of the DPD, and only stopped to open his palm and stare at what he’d drawn. He had to hold both the torn pieces together for a moment, and he laid them out as best he could on his palm. The lights above beamed down upon his hand, like the sun shining out of the clouds, and Gavin frowned when his eyes squinted down at what it was he’d drawn.

How it came to be that he had drawn such an almost near-perfect image was beyond him, but he was unable to deny and falsify what it was that reality held right there in the palm of his hand.

He’d drawn a very accurate sketch of his own husband. It was remarkable, and unmistakable. The sketch wasn’t highly life-like or close to a ‘portrait’, however, one could really make out the black and white CyberLife uniform-even though Nines no longer wore it. His LED light hadn’t been colored in, but every other facial detail-from his eyes, nose, chin, cheeks, and right to his lips-had been sketched down pretty neatly given how hurriedly and erratically Gavin had drawn it.

But all these things didn’t freak Gavin out the most, no.

What scared him and shook him right from his head to his toes and pooled right down into his core, was the fact that he’d drawn Nines with a bright smile on his face…

And he couldn’t have looked happier in the sketch.

“Detective!!”

When he heard Nines calling out for him, Gavin immediately stuffed the drawing into his jean pocket. He heard the pieces crinkling in his pockets, and he winced, hoping Nines also wouldn’t hear it. Luckily however, the RK900 was far too swept up with the sudden investigation, and he was already half-way across the parking lot of the DPD.

Sighing in relief, Gavin hung his head down and followed him.

He didn’t even notice how his right hand slipped within his jean pocket, petting and gently touching the ripped-up drawing.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

“We have arrived, Detective,” Nines announced in his stone-cold voice as he parked the car in the driveway of the old, derelict, dilapidated house… _if_ one could even call it a house to begin with.

Half of the shingles of the roof had been completely torn apart. The windows and windowsills had to be held together with dark masking tape and duct tape, and some cracks still were present in the dirty, mold-covered glass. The grass and trees were scorched and dead, and piles of leaves littered the lawn, even though the summer season was still very early in the year. Animals and vegetation seemed to even refuse to go near the property, for Gavin saw a mother cat immediately pick up her kitten in her jaws and carry its little body away with her when it tried pouncing on the grass.  

The wood of the porch, the door, and railings, and the little hand-crafted bench by the front door had been termite infested, rotten, and it let out a foul odor into the air when the wind blew. A few boots-each of them missing a foot in the pair-were strewn and left with mud covering them up to the ankles, a sliced-up piece of old rope was discarded on the porch, an old tire, as well as a broken baseball bat.

Everything had an old, eerie, ominous feel to it, and Gavin shivered as he stood beside Nines, who was busy surveying and scanning the house, no doubt.

“So Fowler sends us to a fuckin’ crack house?” he scoffed, “what luck.”

“It’s ‘Captain Fowler’, Detective,” Nines spat in his direction as he turned and glared at him, “and do keep your voice down, Detective; we’re still on duty.”

As he moved on ahead, Gavin sneered and flipped him off behind his back, showing attitude given how much Nines had been bossing and ordering him around lately.

“I saw that.”

Gavin froze midway taking a step. His eyes widened, and he let out a small gasp, “The fuck?”

Nines was still approaching the porch, but Gavin childishly wanted to keep up with the banter, and he made the ‘cuckoo’ sign around his head by spinning his index finger in small circular motions by his temple.

“I saw that, too,” Nines’ voice came at his ears again, and Gavin threw his hands up into the air.

_“I give up!!”_

Standing beside Nines, he looked for a doorbell, but it’d been smashed and busted up, so he knocked. He rapped his knuckles on the old door, crossed his arms over his chest, and threw Nines the dirtiest of glares he could muster.

The tall android merely stared coldly at the front door, and Gavin raised a curious eyebrow at him, simply standing beside him and observing just how tall Nines really was.

 _“Holy Batman and Robin, he’s even taller than Connor!!”_ Gavin’s inner thoughts went on for a while as he looked at Nines from head to toe, noticing how the top of his head nearly brushed against the top of the front door before them.

Before he could study anything else, the front door squeaked open loudly, and all of a sudden, a litter of at least seven Corgi puppies ran right out and between Gavin’s legs.

“WHAT THE ASS?!?” Gavin stumbled backwards a little, and he turned to gape at the little furry creatures, when something horrible caught his eye.

He elbowed Nines immediately as he whispered out, “Nines! The puppies are malnourished!”

Nines stared at them as they could barely summon up enough energy and strength to lift their paws and yip away at each other, playing and rolling in the burnt grass. Most of the puppies had their ribs perfectly visible, and tufts of their fur had been torn out in some places. Their ears were a little more bent than usual, and they seemed to hang back and stay as far away from both Gavin and Nines…as if they were afraid of them…

Nines nodded at Gavin, and they turned around when they heard soft footsteps finally approaching. The footsteps stopped, and then standing right before them, was a woman with bright-orange-red dyed hair. She looked like a mess. Whoever had cut her hair obviously didn’t know how to style hair, and their lack of training in the art showed itself greatly. Her hair wasn’t the same length at all anywhere, and she looked like a scarecrow as she stood before Nines and Gavin.

She was tall, thin-far too thin, rather-and had dark bags under her eyes that made her appear gaunter than she already was. She shielded her eyes from the sun with a hand, as if it had been days since she even saw daylight…her clothes seemed far too baggy, and they practically looked like bags hanging around her thin body as she wore them. Gavin hated to come to this conclusion, but he really thought she fit the look and stereotype of a ‘dug addict’.

“May I help you gents?” she had a very heavy accent, and if Gavin had to wager randomly, he was positive she had to have originally come from Kentucky.

He nodded at her at the same time Nines flashed his I.D. and badge. “Good afternoon, ma’am,” Nines greeted coldly, as if he were a drill sergeant about to start up the day with new recruits.

“I’m Lieutenant Nines,” he barely even looked over at Gavin, next, “and this is my partner Detective Reed.”

She inspected his I.D., and then Gavin’s when he raised his badge up, and she sighed and ran a hand through her hair. It flopped down over her forehead like a mop.

“Is this about the call?”

Gavin tilted his head at her, “The call? Which call?”

Nines glared down at him for a second, and then he nodded at the woman, “Yes ma’am, one of your neighbors called in to report a civil dispute?”

She looked down, and her tired, dark brown eyes seemed so downtrodden for a moment. The door then squeaked open more, and a fat man with a beer belly and a green baseball cap appeared next to her. He dragged one of his chubby, large hands around her shoulder, and he tugged her protectively into his chest as he snarled at Nines and Gavin.

He had a thick, black mustache, greasy black hair that hung right down to his chest, and frightful sea-green eyes. His skin was dark, and his fingertips were especially stained yellow…

“The hell is going on here?” he practically roared as he stared between Nines and Gavin a few times.

Suddenly, an expression akin to recognition flooded his face, and his lips twitched before he broke out into one of the craziest grins Gavin had ever seen.

He raised a large hand and pointed at Nines, and then at Gavin, slowly.

“Say…” his eyes twinkled with an emotion Gavin had no idea how to identify, but he knew he didn’t like it at all, whatever it was.

“…I know you two…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *nervously awaits people's theories on why Gavin drew Nines smiling* 👀👀👀👀


	15. Shelley Concept Art 1

Hello all! I had many people request to see Shelley, and ever since I created her, I myself even wanted to see what she would look like! Luckily, my amazingly talented sister (who also is a writer on this website), drew a concept art of her with her tail not extended, and legs out of her body. As such, we BOTH are so excited to share her with you!

Seriously, I have to thank my baby sis for doing this for me, and by all means, if anyone wishes to check out her fanfic, she has one written for Attack on Titan called 'The Color of Their Eyes!'   
Her account name is : 

####  [wingsoffreedom_jeager](https://archiveofourown.org/users/wingsoffreedom_jeager/pseuds/wingsoffreedom_jeager)

Much love to you sis!!! Shelley looks amazing! 😊😊🐤🌹💖

 

 


	16. Peculiarity Managed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *WARNING! Slight homophobia!*

Gavin sat right beside Nines on one of the most disgusting, dirtiest, and foul-smelling sofas he’d ever seen. The entire fabric of the furniture was torn-as were the other furniture sets-and cigarette burn marks and stains ran all over the cushions. Food was caught and trapped between each seat, clinging to it for dear life, and more sticky, half-wet substances Gavin didn’t even want to think about clung to the sofa as well and reeked of a foul stench.

The interior of the house had torn-up, moldy walls and wallpaper that was at least two decades old. The titles in the floor were cracked, and the grouts had been so old and sullied that dirt pushed up from the cracks between them, almost as if the earth beneath the house was trying to make way up to the surface.

Everything was a mess; clothing that was quite old and half-torn up had gone unwashed and laid about everywhere, and Gavin even noticed that some of the clothes perhaps had been used for the puppies, as urine and feces was evident on some of the clothes. Torn newspapers and books also littered the floor, and a few dog kennels lined up against the walls and had been gated off at the far end of the living room away from the sofas.

A coffee table that had a hole right in the left-hand side-possibly the result of someone either kicking or punching their way through it-held dirty cups and plates, and Gavin turned his nose away from them as a few houseflies buzzed about his head.

He turned and gave Nines a look that seemed to say: ‘help me, for God’s sake!’

Nines returned the look in his own cold way, but then the man and the woman sat before Nines and Gavin on a loveseat right across from them on the other side of the coffee table.

The man barely could sit down; his beer-belly enabled him to wedge his way between the coffee table and the sofa, and he grunted as he tried sucking in his gut before he crashed down on the sofa seat next to his ‘wife’.

The rail-thin, pale woman held her hands up in clenched fists, resting them beneath her nose as if praying. She studied Nines for a long time, and then Gavin, before she flashed them both a strange smile. Her teeth were extremely stained, and Gavin doubted that even the most skilled dentist could’ve helped her by now. One of her teeth seemed to even be chipped, but before he could gaze long enough at it, the man seated next to her stroked his mustache, and then he snickered as he pointed crudely at Gavin and Nines.

“I saw these two on the TV,” he elbowed his wife, still snickering, “these two guys are gays!!”

His wife gasped, lowering her fists from her mouth as she giggled like a little girl who just heard the funniest joke on the planet. “I saw ya’ll’s wedding!” she hooted, slapping a hand over her mouth as she leaned against the large man next to her and beamed at Gavin and Nines.

Feeling quite uncomfortable, Gavin cleared his throat, and then gently elbowed Nines so he could begin talking to the bizarre couple, at the very least. It was bad enough that he’d just come to terms with being gay, but now the entire population of North America had to see it, too. What luck.

Nines sighed as he eyed the couple before himself, “May I ask you both your names?” Nines more than likely already had this information in his mind, but it was an age-old police trick of trying to sniff out deception based on the answer and the delivery of it from the suspects.

The man gruffly snorted as he grabbed his wife by the elbow and straightened her posture out a bit, “Ain’t you the cops?”

Nines squinted at him, choosing to remain silent.

The chubby man snorted, as if that proved his point, “You should know the answer then, right?”

“Just answer the question, sir,” Gavin cut in before Nines could say something in retaliation.

He held up a hand, and it eventually came down to rest on the woman’s bone-thin thigh that resembled a twig beneath her loose jeans. “This here is Maggie,” he said, and then he rested that same chubby hand over his own chest as he took in a deep breath, “and I’m Riley.”

He scratched at his chest beneath the yellow-stained wife-beater that had no doubt been white, once, and Nines squinted at him. “May I ask what you two do for a living?”

Riley leaned against his wife as he played with her dry, unkempt hair, “I used to be a pizza delivery man for a few years, and my girl here,” he chuckled, “she don’t work none.”

Nines took in a sharp breath, “I see…” his eyes moved over to the walls, and he noticed some holes in the wall that weren’t bullet holes, but seemed to match the same shape, width, and length of the holes in the coffee table.

Looking back at the table, Nines hummed as his LED light flashed yellow. Gavin knew he was already scanning things and constructing his own ‘crime scene’ for the investigation, and he leaned forward a little, leaning his hands on his kneecaps as he made plenty of mental notes not to touch anything in this house…unless he wanted to get all his vaccinations and a Tetanus shot to boot.

He nervously wrung his fingers and wove them around each other while Nines scanned the floor, and Gavin cleared his throat as he stared at the couple. “Ummm,” Gavin nearly slapped himself, then.

_“Think, dipshit!! What the hell kind of a way to start the conversation is ‘ummm’?!?!”_

He coughed again, trying to cover up for his obvious bumble, and Maggie stared at him with little-to-no concern in her eyes. “Are you okay, Detective?”

He nodded, “Oh yeah, just…just peachy…”

_“Hurry the fuck up, Nines!!”_

Maggie tapped a hand on her bony kneecap that almost appeared to cut from beneath her jeans, “I assume you have some questions for us, then?”

Before Gavin could respond, Riley snorted as he leaned into his wife and hissed in her ear, “I think the only real question is: ‘why’re we allowin’ the gays in our home?’”

Nines glared up immediately at them, but it was Gavin who spoke first.

“With all due respect, Riley, this is America, and gay marriage was made legal way back in June 26th, 2015,” he then paused for added impact, “but if you two are going to support and practice homophobia—”

Riley and Maggie exchanged frightened looks, and then they both shook their heads quickly.

Giggling nervously, Riley waved a hand at Gavin, “Nah, ahaha, who hates them gays?” he looked at his wife, “you? Me? Nah man! I love them gays!”

_“Stop fucking saying ‘gays’, you stupid ignorant hick!”_

Nines took the lead, suddenly. “Very well, sir,” he pointed at the hole in the coffee table, and then the walls, “what happened?”

Riley looked at the wall, and then at the table, shrugging as he wiped his dry lips with the back of a hairy hand, “Just some troubles with the missus, sometimes,” he winked at Nines, “you meanin’ to tell me that you don’t have problems with _your_ wife, Lieutenant?”

At once, Nines stood up, and the table slid violently into Riley’s knees, making him squeal in fear as Nines towered over him with a dangerous expression on his face and an equally dangerously red LED light glowing in the room.

Gavin gently pressed a hand against Nines’, and he whispered, “Nines, don’t…”

Something in his voice must’ve appealed to Nines and moved him. He stared down at Gavin, and he closed his eyes as he slowly sat down and straightened his peacoat with a hand while brushing his dark dress pants off.

“I apologize for that,” he stated plainly, “if you’ll just answer some questions we have, then we’ll leave your home if neither of you wish to press charges.”

Maggie lifted a thin eyebrow, “Charges? What charges?!”

Gavin looked over at Riley, “Your neighbor reported that your husband beat you, ma’am.”

She shook her head stubbornly and wildly, “He don’t beat me!”

“But your neighbor—”

“She should mind her own affairs!” Maggie snapped, then, and Nines stared at her arms when she raised them to brush her hair back when it fell in her face during her angry display. His eyes zoomed in on a pair of little dots embedded in her skin, as if two insects had stung her, but that wasn’t the case exactly…

Gavin raised a hand up, trying to make the upset woman calm again, “Ma’am, it’s okay to tell us the truth,” he glared at Riley, as if already having his mind made up about the man abusing his wife, “you don’t need to defend him anymore!”

Nines snapped at him, suddenly, “Silence, Detective Reed.”

Gavin shut his mouth, not needing much more of an encouragement. He sat back and felt himself blushing due to being scolded by his husband in front of these strange people, but somewhere deep inside, he trusted that Nines had a good reason to tell him to be quiet, and that he was onto something very important.

Nines rose, leaning over the table and towards Maggie as he eyed her arm that was slightly exposed due to the loose sweater she was wearing. Noticing where his attention was, Maggie cowered down into the seat right away, looking like a mouse as she huddled back on the loveseat. Her eyes turned a little glassy, but she sat still while Nines studied her arm.

He gently reached up her sleeve, ignoring Riley’s minor protests. Slowly, Nines rolled her sleeve all the way up to her elbow and he sighed when he saw more of the same two dots littering her skin, covering up and down her forearm and even up to her shoulder when he scanned her on a deeper level.

Gavin noticed it, too, and he gasped, “What happened?!”

“Slo-Freeze,” Nines answered before Maggie could, “you both are addicted to it, aren’t you?”

Maggie’s eyes suddenly rolled up back into her head, and she let out loud giggles as she cradled her knees up and pulled them into her chest as she laughed and laughed and laughed. She began drooling, then, and she held up a hand to her lips, wiping them quickly while her eyes darted around the room.

Gavin stood up as well, and he softly asked Nines, “Is she under the influence right now?”

“No,” Nines responded quickly, then looked back down at Maggie and Riley, “where is the rest of your stash? Hmm?” he paced his way around the table, and stood by Riley’s side, “I know you have them with you, now.”

Holding up both his hands as if Nines had held a gun to his head, the large man merely shook his head wildly, “N-no!!” he waved his hands agitatedly, meat jiggling as he moved, “you’ve got it wrong, now!! I didn’t hit my wife, and we ain’t on drugs!!”

Nines tilted his head down at them both, “Well, not right now you are…”

Gavin gasped, “Wait, they aren’t drug addicts now?”

Sighing tiredly, Nines glared over at Gavin, and there was a moment of awkward silence between them. The harder Nines stared at Gavin, the more confused he became, and then, when Nines blinked for one split second, Gavin’s eyes widened.

_“Oh fuck! I got it, now!!! He’s already gone over their criminal records and shit!! I forgot he could do that in a second or two…”_

Turning back to the couple, Nines rested a hand against back of the loveseat, leaning down and smiling coldly at Maggie. His eyes swept over the numerous ‘dots’ in her skin, and he ran a finger down and over a few of them. “Tell me about the first time you took Slo-Freeze, Maggie,” he hissed gently, trying to coax a response from her gently and carefully, “tell me how it felt…”

“Nines! What the fu—”

Nines’ blue eyes bore into his, and he was immediately silenced.

Maggie gaped at Nines, her hands and fingers shaking and trembling, and she looked at her husband once, and then over at Gavin, and then forward at the coffee table.

Knowing it was going to take more of an effort to get the answer out of her, Nines knelt down by her side. His hand draped forward to rest on the armrest of the sofa, and he offered Maggie another smile, although this one seemed a little more ‘friendly’…if that could be associated with Nines.

“Maggie,” Nines gently breathed, and as she looked over at him, a giggle escaped her, then. She silenced herself by grabbing her husband’s hand, and she pressed it over her mouth, though she still snickered and giggled through her nose.

Nines merely ignored it. “I know you both have been off Slo-Freeze and Red Ice for a few months, and according to your counselor and AA meeting leader, you’re both doing very well and are on the road to recovery…” his eyes fell to her arm once again, “…however, you should consider this more than a friendly warning, Maggie, for if we do find out that you are indeed back on Slo-Freeze, I’m afraid things are going to have to be turned over to the court.”

Riley gasped in shock, and he cradled his giggling wife to his chest. “You can’t do that!! We’re so clean!” he even held out his own arms, as if to make his point, “see?!?! We’re not addicted to shit!!”

Nines tapped a finger on the sofa, “That may very well be true, Riley, but the way things look here,” he held up a finger as he counted down a list of his own, “you could have a case against you for animal abuse, unsanitary and dangerous living conditions, as well as a refusal to cooperate with authorities…”

Gavin held up a finger, “Don’t forget discrimination against homosexuals.”

Nines nodded, “Indeed…” he stopped smiling immediately as he sneered at Riley more than his spaced-out wife, “…now, are you going to answer my questions and allow Maggie to tell me everything she knows about Slo-Freeze, or not?”

Gulping nervously, Riley shook Maggie roughly and growled in her ear, “Just talk to him, Mag!”

Still rocking back and forth on the seat while giggling, Maggie nodded as she stared off at something on the coffee table that likely wasn’t even there. She raised a hand and placed it over her cheek, moaning and gasping in both pain and shock.

“Slo-Freeze…it’s…” she shook her head and giggled again, little tears forming in the corners of her eyes as she slapped her hands on her thighs over and over again until she couldn’t take it anymore and stopped.

Nines stared intently at her, “Yes, you know what you have to tell me, Maggie,” his arm crept up over the back of the sofa until it was directly resting behind her little shoulders, “just tell me the truth, and all this will be over…like one bad dream you forget in the morning.”

 _“Nines, you’re playing with fire…I hope you know what you’re doing!”_ Gavin worriedly bit on one of his fingernails as he watched Maggie for any signs of distress or unpredictability. Even if she’d been off drugs for some odd months, that wasn’t enough of a comfort to him to guarantee him that she wouldn’t attack them if Nines pushed her too hard.

Maggie hooked her fingers onto her husband’s arm, but it seemed like she was just grabbing onto him for support as opposed to trying or wanting to inflict pain. Her eyes were as wide as golf balls, and she looked so awake and alert, now. It was a complete contrast to how they’d first stumbled upon her, as she’d looked so tired and worn-out earlier, but now, she was filled with energy, backed up by fear.

She shook as she placed her hands on her ears and smiled widely, “It’s…it’s a feeling like you’ll never know…n-never ever…”

Nines hissed softly, “Tell me about it, Maggie…”

She giggled as she gently tugged at her hair while her husband looked at her with fear and concern flooding in his eyes.

“Nothing b-beats your f-first time on ‘Freeze’,” she stated in a series of high-pitched giggles and cackles that nearly shook the walls and coffee table, “…it’s the b-best and worst f-feeling ever!!”

Gavin closed his eyes as he shook his head, wishing that he could wave a magic wand and disappear from here forever. This situation was just too uncomfortable, tense, and insane for him to fathom. How Nines could keep pressing this disturbed woman was beyond him. These methods were far too dangerous and inhumane!

Riley crossed his arms over his chest and sternly looked down at the floor, shaking his head slowly while his wife giggled and rocked back and forth like she was trying to comfort and console herself.

“Y-y-you don’t g-g-get stuck on i-i-it right aw-w-way,” she told Nines, lowering her voice to a whisper as she reached out with a finger and tapped his LED light. He allowed it as he stared intently at her.

“Go on.”

She shrieked when the LED light blinked a few times, but remained golden while Nines studied her face. He took notice of how dilated her pupils got as she spoke and trembled more.

Maggie bit her lower lip and shivered, “It’s a d-d-delicious feeling…like, n-n-nothing’s happening, yet everything is at th-the same time…”

She ran her index finger in circles around the LED light, tracing it as she gave off a dreamy smile at it. “It’s l-like being stuck in a dreamland even wh-when you’re awake,” she sighed and then placed a hand on Nines’ forehead, her fingers stroking his skin gently and softly.

“You hate that you begin to love it…”

Nines frowned deeply at her, but still was silent as she turned away from him and looked up at the ceiling.

“What’s r-really bad is that you know your world is on f-fire, yet you can’t s-stop it, because that f-fire feels sooooooooo good…”

Riley closed his eyes and pressed his hands against Maggie’s back, “That’s enough now!” he cried out in pain, “leave her alone now! You got all your answers, didn’t you?!”

Gavin opened his eyes and nodded over at Nines, “He’s right! That’s enough, Nines!!”

Glaring at all three of them, Nines gripped Maggie’s shoulders, and he dragged her closer towards him, making her face him forcefully as he stared down at her. “Tell me who supplies the Slo-Freeze! Tell me everything, NOW!”

Riley tried yanking his wife out of Nines’ grip, but the android was too strong. He kept yelling at Maggie, though it had no effect on her as she rolled her head from side-to-side, knees knocking together and swaying as she swung her legs about and kept giggling.

“WHO IS THE LEADER OF OUROBOROS?? I KNOW YOU HAVE THAT INFORMATION!!!”

“LEAVE MY WIFE ALONE!!!”

“NIIIIIIIIINES!!!!!!!!!!”

There was too much noise and yelling all at once, and Gavin roared as he stood up, shoved the coffee table to the side, and grabbed Maggie in his own hands and stood between her and Nines. He’d wedged himself between her body and Nines’, standing like a protective barrier as he held out a hand and shoved Nines a few feet away from her.

She cried and sobbed, turning and hiding her face against her husband’s chest, and he hushed her and softly rubbed her back and shoulders, whispering things to her to calm her down and console her, while Gavin and Nines stared each other down.

It was silent for a while before Riley screamed up at both of them, “She don’t know who the leader is! For God’s sake can’t you see that?!?”

Nines and Gavin looked at him, and then at each other as they snarled and scowled heatedly before one another.

“We just got the Slo-Freeze from a common street provider; nothing more!” Riley went on to explain, holding his wife closely, “just leave us alone, now! We don’t done no harm to anyone!!”

Gavin nodded, still holding out a hand before Nines, just in case the android wanted to attack Maggie or Riley once again, “He’s right, Nines! Ouroboros don’t go around just easily handing this information out, you should know that!” he then held out both hands and shrugged, “I don’t know what the hell’s gotten into you, Nines, but unless you think the ‘leader’ directly is selling and giving Slo-Freeze away to everyone who asks, you’re more dense than I thought, and I am done with this damn investigation!”

Nines growled, “What do you mean you’re—”

“I’m filing the report back to Fowler, as this woman isn’t wishing to press charges against her husband, I see no damn evidence supporting a domestic abuse case, and they’re drug-free, as is the rest of the household…” he turned and glared at Riley, then, “but I’m going to _definitely_ file a complaint against you _both_ for animal abuse and neglect!!”

Riley’s jaw fell open, and he stood up with the help of a hand pressed against the sofa armrest for support, as well as another hand gripping his wife’s bony thigh. His mustache twitched as he held a hand out at Gavin. “Now just you wait a second here!” he began gruffly, “you can’t just come in here and mock me and my woman, and then threaten to take away our pets!!”

Maggie leaned her head on Riley’s shoulder and just shrugged, whispering over and over, “It freezes the mind, it freezes the soul, it freezes everything, it freezes everything, it freezes…”

Riley pointed at her, “See what you done?!”

Gavin was already turning back to the front door, so eager to get the hell out of this nightmare of a jungle. “Expect a call from Animal Protection Services sometime this week,” he hurriedly yanked open the front door, hearing it squeaking as it rocked on the hinges, just barely still held up in place.

Looking back over his shoulder, Gavin saw Nines following closely behind him, though he was throwing dirty looks over at Riley and Maggie as they kept up behind him. Maggie shivered still, hiding her face against her husband’s thick neck while he shooed them forward with his hands.

“Go on! Get!!” he screamed, “get off my darn property!!”

Gavin did a mock bow, “Don’t worry, we’re leaving, Your Worship!”

Just before the door closed on them, Gavin heard Maggie’s soft voice still whispering out, “It freezes everything, it damages everything…it will kill you and then make you reborn…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Gavin and Nines!! Man, that house was filthy DX I was even itching when I edited this DX


	17. A Painful Vice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 🤐🤐🤐🤐🤐

Gavin watched as one final puppy refused to go back in the hellhole of a house through the little doggie door built into the bottom of the front door. Though the others had eagerly bounded inside, this particular puppy seemed less frightened of Gavin and Nines in comparison to its siblings, and it sniffed at Gavin’s shoes while letting out small ‘yips’ and barks. It stopped and panted up at him, barely able to stand up on its hind legs while it pawed at him for attention.

Nines stared down at it when Gavin bent down and picked it up in his arms.

“Hey little fella!!” As he lifted the puppy, it nuzzled against his chest, tail wagging back and forth excitedly, as if this was one of the first times it’d been held in a long, long time.

Nines sighed as his mouth twisted in a moue of disgust, “Put it down; we don’t know what kinds of germs it may have, Detective.”

Gavin cradled the puppy to his chest, gently stroking its head and ears. “You sound like you’re raving, Nines,” he said as the puppy licked his hands in a show of gratitude and playfulness.

Nines rolled his eyes as he moved a little closer to the DPD police vehicle they’d arrived at the house in. He calmly opened the door and stood by it, LED light yellow. “Detective Reed,” he said coldly and snidely, “I’m going to make a call to Captain Fowler, and by the time I finish my conversation, I hope you’ve set that animal down and will join me in the car…unless you want to find an alternative ride back to the precinct.”

With that stated, Nines sat down in the car, and slammed the diver’s door behind himself. His lips started moving, indicating he was already speaking with Captain Fowler.

Gavin rolled his eyes at Nines, but then he stared at the puppy and gave it a warm smile. It tilted its head at him and yipped in response, which made Gavin smile even more.

“Don’t listen to him,” Gavin whispered into one of its long ears, “he’s always grumpy!!”

Again, the puppy yipped, and it struggled in his hands almost desperately. Its paws scratched at Gavin’s clothing, and it let out small whines as it shifted in his arms.

Gavin’s eyes widened, “Woah, woah, woah,” he lowered the puppy to the grass, “don’t pee on me! Just go if you gotta go!!”

Thinking it indeed was trying to urinate, Gavin set the puppy down, and he watched it scamper over around the yellow-painted, old, peeling garage door. It went around the right-hand corner, tail wagging as its little, tiny paws supported its body. It looked back at Gavin, barking and pointing with its snout somewhere in the grass.

Gavin stared intently at it, taking a few steps closer to it as he brushed past the front of the car.

“What’re you doin’, little one?”

The puppy growled at something, holding its head and snout down in the grass, sniffing heavily and excitedly at something. Suddenly, its tail stopped wagging, and it growled a little before looking over at Gavin shortly.

Something was off. Gavin sensed it right away, and thinking that the puppy had gotten into rotten food, scrap metal, paint, poison, or something far worse that would endanger its life, Gavin rushed on ahead, falling into the grass as he gently pushed the puppy aside.

“Hey, hey, hey,” he cooed at it, “what’re you doin’?”

It pushed back in its original spot, clawing at the grass, and as shortly-cut and burnt as it was, when Gavin bent down his head a little, he saw something he’d nearly missed when he first knelt down in the grass next to the puppy.

There, beneath the sunlight in the bright, clear day, was a little square-shaped object. It was impossible to see even when he bent down so much into the grass, and Gavin carefully grabbed it and placed it in his open palm. The Corgi puppy whined as it stared at him with round, dark eyes, letting out a little half-growl before it barked softly.

“Shhh,” Gavin hushed it, turning the little ‘box’ over in his hands. It was grey in color, and it was barely the size of even a dime. In shined and glinted in the sunlight, and Gavin turned it around, but he was unable to find anything within it. It was just a solid mass, and although it had a few lines and indents in it, the box was otherwise untouched.

Strange…what a strange find indeed…

“Detective!!”

Gavin nearly fell over in fear, but he got to his feet when Nines called out for him. He quickly put the object into his pocket, worried that the Corgi puppy would later return to eat it and harm itself. Picking the little creature up in his hands, Gavin waved at Nines while walking back over to the front porch with the puppy, and he set it down by the doggie door as he sighed sadly.

“Sorry little guy,” he rubbed its head and ears one more time while it whined, as if picking up on the clue that he had to leave, now.

“I can’t bring you with me, I’m so sorry, little one,” he tapped it gently on the tip of its wet nose, and it wagged its tail, albeit sadly, and a little slowly while it whined and cried.

Ruefully, Gavin whispered before it while he held open the swinging door for it, “I promise I’m gonna get you and your brothers and sisters outta here! You’ll see!”

The puppy licked his face once before hurrying inside, its little paws and sharp claws clicking away as it disappeared once more inside the horribly messy, foul-smelling house. Soon, its white and brown furry back was out of view, and Gavin sighed as he got up and brushed dirt off his jeans and shirt.

Nines glared at him from inside the car. “Are you finished playing around with dogs, Detective??”

Gavin made a ‘yapping’ motion with his hand, flapping his fingers up and down against his thumb as he mimed a mouth opening and closing as words flew out of it. Nines snarled at him and merely pointed at the passenger’s seat with his jaw and chin jutting forth.

Taking the hint, Gavin sat down after he’d thrown open the passenger door, and once he was buckled in, he slammed the door-just to get a rise out of Nines. Unfortunately, it didn’t work, and all the stoic RK900 did was pull out of the driveway while glaring straight ahead out the windshield.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin was comfortable with driving in silence. He didn’t mind that Nines wasn’t talking to him as they made their way back to the station. He really longed for silence as he thought to himself while staring out his side of the window. The world sped by as Nines drove faster, and trees, grass, leaves, bushes, birds, cows, horses, and all sorts of other worldly, outdoor things breezed past the clean window as Gavin stroked the little box in his jean pocket whenever he placed his hand right above it.

He snuck his hands into his pockets, bored of his mind as he imagined what he was going to do when the day was over. Perhaps he should head out for a night in town? No…he was ‘married’, and he was sure his ‘husband’ would want them to work on the damn investigation.

Fuckin’ married life.

As he was swamped in his thoughts regarding Maggie’s statements about Slo-Freeze, Gavin felt that nothing really made sense at all. Maggie had claimed that Slo-Freeze wasn’t immediately addictive and likely not as satisfying to take as Red Ice was, but then why were so many people in Detroit addicted to Slo-Freeze?! Surely they knew its effects, no?? What was the point of being addicted to something so horrible evil that it made your mind literally freeze up while it destroyed your body piece-by-piece, limb-by-limb??

He didn’t understand it, but as he dove deeper in his thoughts, Nines just had to go and interrupt him, as usual.

“Are you really going to make a report to Animal Protective Services, Detective Reed?” he inquired plainly, and it seemed more like a declarative statement than a question.

Gavin threw him a foul look. “I can’t believe you’re even asking this, Nines,” he grumbled, “I mean, you saw how those poor pups were living!! How can you not feel sorry for them?”

Though Nines was listening to him and watching him, he didn’t even offer a sneer…just those dark blue eyes full of loathing.

Gavin rolled his eyes as he held out a hand before Nines. “See? You don’t care much at all.”

It was silent for a little while longer before Gavin ran a hand through his hair and tried sitting as comfortably as he could in his seat. It just dug into his shoulders and back, and he sat forward, eager to get away from that sharp pain.

The box dug into his jeans deeper, and it practically poked into his thighs. How uncomfortable!!!

Gavin dug his fingers into his pockets, slowly pulling the box out with him as Nines turned on the windshield wipers.

This earned him a snort from Gavin, “It’s not raining, dipshit!”

A few seconds later, thunder echoed and boomed in the sky, and the first few little raindrops splashed down on the clean windshield. The wipers brushed them back and away, and Gavin felt his entire face growing red with embarrassment when Nines turned his head to the right and threw him a triumphant look.

He cleared his throat, “Sorry Detective, you were saying?”

“You twerp,” Gavin snarled as he finally withdrew the tiny box, holding it in a closed palm as he sighed in exhaustion.

A snort was his response. “Prevarication and obfuscation appear to be your greatest fortes, Detective Reed.”

“And apparently, yours consists of being a mega-douche!” Gavin argued back ferociously.

The wipers squelched and squeaked obnoxiously as they dragged along the windshield, and Nines grunted as he stared on ahead at the road before them. “It appears that Slo-Freeze is just a means to an end for Ouroboros,” he said more to himself than to Gavin, “whoever the gutter-slime is serving as their leader deserves nothing more than ignominy for the rest of their natural born life…” he turned and peeked over at Gavin, who had opened the palm of his hand slowly.

“…and when I get my hands on them, I shall personally see to it that—DETECTIVE!!!!!!!!! DROP THAT AT ONCE!!!!!!!!!”

The sounds of Nines’ thundering voice scared the hell out of him.

In less than a few seconds, Gavin’s shoulders and muscles involuntarily tightened and spasmed, and his hand closed tightly around the tiny box. It rolled down to his wrist when the car went over a little bump in the road, and the box then jiggled, and it let out a small noise.

“Shhhhhhiiiiiiiiink!”

As Gavin peered down at it while Nines screamed at him and swiped at him to drop the box, the tiny object shook again, and then two needles burst out from beneath it. They dug sharply into Gavin’s wrist, and pierced right into his veins.

Gavin’s head snapped back, and he let out a choked cry as his eyes rolled back into his head. His blood could literally be seen behind closed eyelids as it froze within his veins, like a beautiful waterfall caught in a blizzard, snapping shut and still in time as all semblances of motion had been stripped from it. His red and white blood cells danced like little elves, spinning and interchanging as they swung about each other in a slow, horrible masquerade.

“DETECTIVE!!!!!!!!!!! DETECTIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

His brain could register that Nines was screaming, but then, as if in a movie of sorts, everything slowed down by more than 90%. The car moved like a snail. Other cars that drove by were like turtles just gliding along the dark road. The raindrops slowly fell and took their time, turning into nails and screws as they clattered down from dark clouds and spread wildfire everywhere with them that ate him up one bone at a time.

He felt he was drooling, but his face, tongue, lips, teeth, nose, ears, eyes, throat, everything was dumb. His teeth were feeling as if a million worms and bugs were crawling within his gums, daring to burst forth as they shoved and ate away a path through his teeth so they could come out. His tongue lolled, his eyes snapped shut on their own accord, and everything felt as if it weighed more than ten million pounds. His flesh was dragging on his muscles and bones, and it was just too, too much for him. He wanted nothing more than to unzip himself out of the man-suit of flesh he had, just to shrug off the extra weight and finally be free.

Freedom…it tasted sooooo good; it soothed, it relaxed, it beckoned, it begged.

Lights and flashes danced along him, and he was spinning along with them as he felt hands grabbing at him and dancing with him. They would dance away into nothingness, and it was all he wanted to do as his internal organs burned and turned to mush and goo.

He was falling upside-down, backwards, sideways, through time, through air, through nothingness as he laughed and heard people laughing with him. The stars and cosmos were nothing, now, and wherever he was, he was shrouded in warmth and happiness that was so acute he could practically taste it. Chasing after that feeling, he cried out for joy, hands reaching up and feeling like he was holding two large logs instead of his own arms.

He was certain he had finally left the realm of the waking world, and he was beyond any possible plane of existence. He felt his body detaching from his soul, like an empty husk or a shell of what he once was, and he felt himself lifelessly floating upwards. He wasn’t cold, he wasn’t warm, he wasn’t even exhausted; he wasn’t even alive…

He closed and opened his eyes without a hassle or struggle, and he heard no noises surrounding him; he just knew he was not here. He closed his eyes again, not feeling pressed for air, and when he opened them, he saw a shadowy figure surrounded by a faint orange glow approaching him. Time seemed to be unimportant suddenly, for the figure seemed to float, and then lose and gain distance, until in an instant, it was inches away from Gavin’s eyes.

He was unable to feel pain or discomfort, now, but he knew something was terribly off. It was all felt when his steady heartbeat echoed in his ears, and then Gavin knew that whatever had happened, it was coming to an end. Things were stabilizing, and his body was his own. He wasn’t feeling heavy, tired, and numb all over anymore, and he was finally able to open his eyelids a little.

The light stung, and he let out a tiny hiss as he saw something dark looming over him. Was it a monster?! Was he dead?! Was he in hell? Heaven!??! What had happened??

He hated not having answers, but how was he to get any?? He was too weak to move, and all Gavin could do was lie back as he willed himself to close his eyes and beg for unconsciousness. At least he would be away from this madness if he fell into a deep, dreamless sleep…

He knew he wasn’t alone, however. The shape looming and hovering over him was hissing down at him, and then it shifted, its movements and patterns still too fast to take in at once without Gavin feeling like his head was going to explode if he studied it too much and for too long.

Something cool touched his lips, a startling electricity bolt against the agony of his skin. He opened his mouth, desperate, afraid; and then an ice-cold liquid poured into it, and Gavin’s throat locked up. His tongue was working, thankfully, as were his taste buds and his senses.

Water. Someone was giving him fresh, cool water, and it was like a blessing literally raining down upon him after he experienced what felt like months of torture.

He was unable to control himself, and he drank too quickly, still not used to having all the feelings and sensations in his face returning at once. The cold water then poured out of his mouth, and a firm-yet gentle-hand came to rub his throat. He choked and coughed until the liquid had gone down his esophagus, and the fingers massaged his neck and throat very gently, urging more of the water down.

“Drink, Gavin, drink,” urged a hoarse, panicked whisper, and Gavin couldn’t believe it was coming from Nines. He swallowed, pain like a pulse in the back of his throat, and Nines kept pouring more and more of the fresh water until it was escaping from his mouth, rivers of ice over his chin. Nines then stopped pouring, mumbling something that might have been encouraging, and long fingers scooped up the escaping liquid and poured it back into Gavin’s mouth.

Blissful, peaceful coldness was spreading through Gavin, and Gavin had never wanted anything more in his life as the fires burning within him finally were extinguished. Eyes closed, he fought to catch the last drops of blessed relief, catching Nines’ index finger with his tongue, sucking every last speck of water from the warm skin in a delirium of relief.

Like the bloom of a blush, warmth returned to him; real, natural warmth, and his muscles relaxed with a pleasure that was almost obscene. He opened his eyes.

Nines’ fingers were still against his lips. Gavin’s tongue was curled around one finger, and Nines was staring at him with a wide-eyed expression that brought back Gavin’s panic in a sudden rush.

Realizing he was sucking on his husband’s digit like an infant suckling its mother’s breast, he released the finger with a shriek and sat up. Immediately however, Gavin clutched at his head, the room spinning like a crazy top. His stomach lurched and he let out a pained groan as he studied his own bedroom walls.

Great.

At least Nines had the decency to bring him back home, instead of taking him back to the precinct. At least he could now suffer in the privacy of the home as opposed to in front of his colleagues.

But first, he needed to get rid of the headache he’d somehow had, and he sat up more, trying to get up and find some aspirin, when Nines held out his hand and gently pushed him back down on his bed.

“Lie still,” he gently breathed, frowning down at Gavin as his LED light turned yellow, “your skull’s likely feeling like someone cleaved it in two, yes?”

Gavin moaned in pain, rubbing his eyes as his head and brain banged against each other.

When he’d opened his eyes, he was shocked to see a concerned face hovering above his and almost let out a scream. The concerned expression disappeared instantly however, and was replaced by one of sneering indifference.

“You should take up the art of acting, Detective Reed,” Nines hissed down at him as he leaned over his bed, “you have always had a flair for dramatics and attention seeking antics,” Nines taunted as he brushed his hands against his black pants, and Gavin suddenly remembered that they still were slightly damp from the water he’d poured into his own palms before gently pressing them against his lips and helping Gavin drink…

His memories slammed back into him, and Gavin gasped as he gripped his clean sheets and pointed over them at Nines, “You called me ‘Gavin’…” he coughed, barely able to speak, but then summoned strength in his vocal chords somehow and rasped out, “I swear, I…I heard you calling me by my first name…”

Nines merely grunted, “Well, you were halfway to your death due to your own ineptitude, Detective Reed,” he paced over towards the other side of the bed, where he collected a wet face towel Gavin had never seen previously resting over the edge of a small bowl filled with warm water.

_“When did he place that there??”_

Holding the bowl and cloth in a hand, Nines peered down at Gavin coldly, and he raised a brow, as if waiting for Gavin to say something.

Gavin felt himself blushing again, and he sniffed, “Umm…th-thank you?”

Nines sighed in exasperation and cast Gavin a wary look. “This doesn’t excuse you and your pusillanimous actions, Detective Reed,” he set the bowl and cloth down on the dresser by the bed before wandering back over to the left side of the bed and crossing his arms over his broad chest while sneering down at Gavin.

“Would you like to tell me how in the name of Persephone you managed to get your hands on Slo-Freeze, Detective?”

Gavin nearly fainted. While he’d heard what Nines had proclaimed, there was just no way, _no way_ Nines had actually said it…NO WAY!!!!!

And yet, he knew Nines had, for he easily repeated himself while glaring menacingly at Gavin, who was still lying on his back as he stared up at the ceiling in fright and panic. He couldn’t face Nines, not when his expression was so sharp with hot anger it could have cut and burned flesh. But the android’s words rang about in Gavin’s head and rattled in his skull for a few minutes while Gavin’s brain slowly processed what Nines had asked him.

What.

The.

FUCK?!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My. Gods.  
> 😲👀  
> Literally this chapter...  
> Nines.....😢😲 *is speechless*


	18. Satin Curiosity

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PREPARE YOURSELVES!

Nines placed his hands on his hips as he sneered down haughtily at Gavin. “I’m waiting for your answer, Detective Reed,” he spat out scathingly, eyes constantly moving over Gavin, constantly judging and assessing him with contempt.

Gavin shook and quivered beneath the sheets, even though he wasn’t cold. His faculties had returned to him and were functioning as before the incident, but that didn’t make Gavin feel better about the situation he found himself currently in.

He was fully awake, now, and all he could do was gasp and stammer as his eyes glazed over and widened, minutes going by without him blinking. His eyes grew dry and began to burn and sting, so he forced himself to blink as he rubbed his eyes and groaned.

“Nooo…n-nooo fuckin’ way this is happenin’ to me, Nines…nooo!”

Nines frowned at him, “It most certainly _did_ happen, Detective,” he walked a little closer to the bed, “so I suggest you tell me right now what in the name of Hades possessed you to inject yourself with Slo-Freeze??”

Gavin felt his headache growing, and he held a hand against his stomach as he blinked blearily at Nines and shook his head. “I…I don’t understand h-h-how I took it either…”

“This is becoming very tedious, Detective,” Nines warned thinly as he held up a hand, “would you prefer answering to Captain Fowler instead, then?”

That was a _very_ good question, but Gavin had to ask one of his own, then.

“Wait…why are we in your home, Nines?” he checked the bedroom, as if needing to make extra sure that this wasn’t a dream at all.

Nines tapped a finger on his chin, LED light yellow. “Don’t answer a question with a question, Detective; it’s quite banal.”

Gavin threw his hands down on the bed, and the mattress gave a slight groan when his limbs sank into it. “I just…” he closed his eyes and shook his head. How was he to even answer this question?! He couldn’t exactly say: ‘See, Nines, this Corgi puppy showed it to me, and I thought it was just a part of a machine or something, so I picked it up because I didn’t want the little puppy eating it and choking on it!!’ As if Nines would even believe that for a second!!!

Gavin glared back up at Nines, who was already sneering derisively at him, the hard line of his mouth curling up like a wire caught in flames. “Let me guess,” he said blandly, “you’ve never before seen what Slo-Freeze even looks like, have you?”

………………

_“You twat…”_

Nothing needed to be said; everything was already heavy and clear in the silence between Gavin and Nines. The tall android pressed a hand against his right cheek as he shook his head in disbelief at Gavin. The detective felt his own cheeks burning and turning red, and he nearly slid back under the sheets just to escape the look Nines was giving him silently.

He clicked his tongue against his teeth. “Tsk, tsk, tsk,” he wagged a finger at Gavin, “another display of your interminable ineptitude, Detective?”

Gavin growled, “Let’s move past this, Nines **;** it’s not like you’ve _never_ made a mistake in your damn life either.”

“You can’t ignore your maladroitness for too long, my _husband_ ,” Nines spat with plenty of venom that it made Gavin blanch, “I fear it could be your own undoing one day…”

Gavin waved him off, finally finding his strength as he pushed the covers aside. “I don’t think so, Nines,” he looked down at the floor, and his eyes burned, stomach suddenly queasy.

_“Okay…don’t get up too quickly, Gavin…not unless you want to barf all over his floor…or on him…yeah…let’s aim to barf on him!!”_

He steadied himself up carefully, placing one foot down on the floor while rooting the other in the mattress for support. He almost retreated back to the bed and beneath the covers when he felt how cold the wood beneath his foot was.

Gavin shivered a little, “Come on, Nines! I’ve never seen-let alone held-Slo-Freeze before!!” he squinted up at Nines, then, “how the heck was I supposed to know what it looked like??”

Nines hummed, staring at the ceiling before glaring down at Gavin. “I guess I could answer you in a way that you would understand…” he grinned impishly, “…so I will say: ‘haven’t you ever heard of Google?’”

_“….Seriously, I’m really going to barf on him, now.”_

Gavin threw him a sarcastic smirk, “Oh, hardy-har-bloody-har, you’re so freakin’ funny, Nines!!”

Nines shook his head, “I really wish you would have more insight, Detective,” he looked to the side, almost a little uneasy, “that was only a tiny dosage you ingested as well, so it really could’ve ended up more perilous for your case.”

Before Gavin could snap back at him, Nines fixed him with a withering look. Frustration and annoyance bled off him as he barked out, “Don’t be a fool. It was obviously a momentary lapse on my part to even let you near the damn thing. If it engenders this kind of reaction, then I surely won’t be so stupid again.”

Gavin snarled, “I don’t need a fuckin’ babysitter, Nines!”

Nines actually laughed. “I don’t know why I was nearly surprised by your impertinence. You are a fool, Detective; that dose wasn’t meant to draw you in just yet! It was only a taste!”

Gavin groaned as he tried getting up again, and he placed a hand on the night table by the left side of the bed for support. “Well Nines,” he chuckled as he shook his head, “I’ll be sure to include that feature into my book of ‘Drugsie-Wugsies’.”

“This is serious, Detective,” Nines spat as he watched Gavin practically limp over towards his dresser and grab a pair of black socks, “there’s no way to really tell what Slo-Freeze can do to the human body immediately.”

Gavin sat down on the foot of the bed as he dressed himself slowly into something a little warmer. “Well, you heard Maggie,” he explained as he put on the right-foot sock first, “she said that you can’t really get addicted to it first, right?” he then addressed the left-foot, “I’m sure we’ve nothing to fear, Nines.”

His husband merely snorted, “Only someone with a puerile brain would believe such notions…” he paused, snidely glaring at Gavin, then. “I sure hope you’re as confident about this as you sound, Detective,” Nines turned and began making his way for the bedroom door, pausing in his steps as he turned and cast Gavin a cold look.

Gavin was getting up to go to the closet and grab himself a black sweater, when he saw the look Nines was casting at him. It was horribly cruel, and held a lot of sheer and utter disappointment. It only instilled anger and hatred in Gavin’s heart, and he frowned at Nines as he stood and offered him an equally spiteful look of his own.

After a few minutes, Nines grabbed the door handle, and gently closed the door behind himself as he left.

Gavin snorted and whispered, “Well, fuck you too, my darling _husband_.”

He put the sweater on, immediately feeling warmth seeping into his bones as he threw his head back and sighed. He massaged his lower back, not having noticed before how badly it actually ached…odd.

Gavin rolled his shoulders forwards, and then backwards, and then rolled his neck from side to side as he worked the tension out of his body. As he was engaged in his little warm-up ‘exercise’, something banged against his door, and he yelped as he moved away from it.

“The hell?!?”

Gavin ran back up to it, pressing a hand down against the door handle, “Who’s there?!?!”

Booooooooop!!!!!! Beeeeeeeeep!!!! “Detective. Reed. Open. The. Door. Please.”

He let out a sigh of relief, immediately flinging the door open as he bent down. “Shelley!! I almost forgot about you, girl!” he chuckled when the little silvery-colored Nano-Bot floated into the room, her eye light soft blue as she circled him and beeped tiny beeps, perhaps her own version of an excited greeting.

“You’re so quiet all the time that I sometimes forget about you, I’m sorry!”

Shelley paused as she floated before him, her single front-leg and single back-leg standing rigidly as she tilted her head at him. “Error. Words. Unrecognized. Error.”

Gavin sighed, “Yeah, I figured.”

_“Doesn’t Nines ever fuckin’ upgrade her or some shit?? I feel like she only knows a few, limited certain things…”_

Wanting to test this out, Gavin paused for a moment while Shelley studied him, and he came up with a little ‘task’ for the Nano-Bot.

“Shelley,” he spoke calmly-but clearly, “what’s your opinion on President Cristina Warren?”

Beeeeeeeeep!!!!! Suddenly, a little holographic image appeared out from Shelley’s ‘eye’, and her light glowed white as she presented a small ‘clip’ of the President walking around, and then giving a speech.

“President. Warren. Date. Of. Birth. September. 17th. 1985. First. Term. Of. Election. In. The. United. States. Year. 2036.”

Gavin sighed in exasperation as he tossed her an incredulous look, “I said ‘opinion’, baby girl,” he spoke a little louder, then, “what’s your _opinion_ on President Warren?”

Shelley’s clips of the President discontinued, and her light turned orange, suddenly. Booooop!!!! Beeeep!! “Error. Error. ‘Opinion’. Not. Computing. Error.”

“Hmmm….”

She tilted her head at him, then, “Good. Evening. Detective. Reed. What. Can. I. Assist. You. With?”

_“Aaaaaand we’re back to square one. Lovely.”_

Well, at least he knew for a fact that Shelley did things she was ‘ordered’ to do as far as a strict, concrete task was concerned, so Gavin stood to his full height as he pointed at himself.

“Scan me, Shelley,” he looked down at his toes and sighed, “I need to know if I’m fucked up after accidentally taking Slo-Freeze.” Technically, Gavin knew he could’ve just asked Nines to do it for him, but he really, _really_ didn’t want to do that right now. Shelley was for sure the better option!!!

Shelley’s light turned bright green, and it wavered over Gavin slowly, from head-to-toe. Beeeeeeeeeep! “Initiating. Bio-scan. Initiating. Bio-scan.” Booooooooop!!!!! Beeeeeep! “Bio-scan. Complete. Bio-scan. Complete!”

Gavin anticipated the worst, so he sat back down on the foot of the large bed as he held his hands together in his lap. Staring down worriedly at Shelley, he sighed, “Okay girl, tell me what you got for me.”

Beeeeep! “Detective. Reed. Healthy. Lungs. Healthy. Heart. Healthy. Brain. Blood. Pressure. Slightly. Above. 80.”

Gavin frowned, “Okay…so that’s not too bad…continue…”

Boooooop! “Body. Temperature. 97.9°F. Slight. Case. Of. Hyperspermia.”

Gavin scratched his head, “Huh? Wanna define that for me, Shelley?” Too many fancy medical terms gave him a headache!!

Beeeeeeep! She tilted her head up at him as she spoke on, “Hyperspermia. A. Condition. In. Which. A. Man. Produces. A. Larger. Than. Normal. Volume. Of. Semen.”

_“Aaaaaaaaaalrightyyyyy, I wish I never fuckin’ asked.”_

Although he knew that she didn’t care how mortified he was, he still held his head down and looked around the bedroom as he coughed awkwardly.

“Well,” he began, “I’m glad my guys are healthy and all that, but—”

Shelley apparently had more information for him. Beeeep! “Males. With. Hyperspermia. Usually. Have. Higher. Sex. Drives. Than. Males. That. Do. Not. The. Testicles—”

“Shelley, STOP!!” Gavin waved both hands at her, then took to hiding his face in the palm of his hand as he shook his head. He was beyond embarrassed.

“Jesus Christ, Shelley!!”

Boooop!!! Beeepp!! “What. Else. May. I. Assist. You. With?”

Gavin coughed, “Well, seein’ as my balls and dick are healthy,” he shook his head, “Jesus Christ-ahem! I think we should move on to making a report to Animal Protective Agencies about the shit I saw happenin’ to these poor Corgi puppies…” he hadn’t forgotten about the little pups left back with the crazy couple-Maggie and Riley. If there was one thing Gavin Reed constantly ensured he did, it was to keep his promises. He also just couldn’t go to sleep tonight worrying about the puppies, either.

Shelley whirred and purred at him, as if hearing about ‘puppies’ alone was cheering her up.

“Task. Computed. Address. Required. For. Report.”

Gavin smiled, “My pleasure. It’s 109 Charles Street West, home of a Maggie and Riley Saunders.”

Shelley’s eye-slit shut for a moment, and she whirred as she hovered a little higher into the air. Her eye then opened, and she stopped moving. Suddenly, a woman’s voice that wasn’t her own spoke out loud.

“Emergency Animal Rescue Hotline, how may I help you?”

Gavin knew he was on speaker, so he nodded at Shelley. “Hi there,” he greeted warmly, “I’d like to make a report about some ‘at-risk’ Corgi puppies.”

The woman began typing something on her keyboard quickly, “Okay sir, I’m just going to have to ask you a few questions, if you don’t mind!”

He smiled, even though she was unable to see it. “I don’t mind at all.”

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

When the report had been made, Gavin found himself feeling a lot better-both physically and emotionally. He could really go to bed tonight knowing he’d done something good for the world, even though he’d accidentally taken Slo-Freeze. That was still an issue, and he wondered how Nines was taking it all…

Suddenly, as Gavin was sitting down on his bed remembering how furious Nines had been with him, he heard voices coming up from within the heater vent installed down in the floor right beside his left-hand night table. Curiosity gripped and took him hard, and Gavin walked over towards the heating vent, bending down as he lowered his head and practically made his ear kiss the vent. He could just about hear Nines speaking to someone!

Shelley was now perfectly level with his ears, and she spun around him excitedly. She made a lot of noise, sadly, and Gavin could hardly make out the words Nines was saying downstairs.

Beeeeep, beeeep, boooop, boooop, beeeep!!!

He grunted in agony, “Shelley, please hush!! I can’t hear shit!!”

Booop! Booop! Beeep!!

Gavin was barely able to make out Nines saying: Captain Fowler.

He sat up as his patience began wearing thin. While he knew it was horrible to eavesdrop on Nines’ conversation, he just couldn’t help but be nosy and want to poke around a little, especially after what had happened.

Gavin was truthfully grateful that Nines hadn’t taken them both back to the precinct as per Fowler’s orders and instructions, but there was still an aching feeling deep down in Gavin’s gut that made him worry and fearful of whether Nines was still reporting the incident to Fowler or not. He needed to find out, NOW.

As Shelley flew around his head, he was about to yell at her, when he thought of something brilliant.

Spinning around quickly, Gavin placed his hands down on the floorboards as he smiled at Shelley warmly. “Hey, Shelley!!”

She immediately stopped flying around and beeped at him.

“You can record things, right girl?”

Beeeep! “Affirmative. May. I. Assist. You. In. A. Recording?”

Gavin bit his lower lip, wanting to test it first, just in case Shelley did something weird or crazy like record his ass or something…well, she _did_ scan his balls before, so what other conclusion was he to come to???

He pointed up at his mouth, “Record this, please: Nines is an asshole, and he smells worse than a garbage dump hobo freshly washed up on a beach after having roasted in the hot sun for almost a full day…and he’s a shit-miser.”

Beeeeeeeeep! “Recording. Complete.”

He gave her a half-smile, “Play it back for me.”

Boooooooop!! “Nines is an asshole, and he smells worse than a garbage dump hobo freshly washed up on a beach after having roasted in the hot sun for almost a full day…and he’s a shit-miser.”

He clapped in glee and triumph when his own voice came back at his ears, and he beamed down with pride at Shelley. “Excellent, girl! Now,” he leaned down before her, eyes shining as he smiled even wider now that this all had worked and been proven to work flawlessly.

“…I need you to do something for me, Shelley…”

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Nines sat in his favorite red chair, staring at the turned off fireplace as he spoke to Captain Fowler as part of Gavin’s and his own routine check-up. Needless to say, his superior was furious that Nines and Gavin had yet to return and report back to him at the precinct, and he’d yelled at Nines for nearly four whole minutes before Nines had been able to successfully calm Captain Fowler down. Unfortunately, Nines was still in ‘trouble’ due to not having looked after the investigation as properly and closely as he should have been, and Captain Fowler was still sternly scolding him as he reminded him about his duties and responsibilities for the thousandth time.

“I made you in charge of the narcotics unit for a reason, Nines!” Fowler screamed at him, making his audio receptors buzz and hum, and his LED light turned red as he clenched a fist down into his lap.

“…I know you’re one of the best, Nines,” Fowler continued, voice still loud as a beating drum, “and I expect the best from my best!!!”

“I understand, Sir,” Nines stated for the hundredth time, crossing a leg and draping it over the other as he closed his eyes and waited for this all to be over…if that time would arrive…soon…please…

Fowler gruffly screamed out again, “It was a simple task, Nines! Just investigate the Saunder property, report back to me, and then finish the day with whatever the fuck it is you do!!! Is that too much to ask?!?!”

Nines clenched his teeth together as he ground out, “No Sir, it is not.”

“Damn right it ain’t!!” Fowler spat, “I expected you to be back with Gavin, Nines, and what did you do?? You disappointed me by ditching and probably going off somewhere to argue or fight with Gavin-just as you usually do!!”

Nines mumbled under his breath, “That wasn’t the case; Detective Reed was dealing with a health issue, Sir.”

“What was that, Nines?!?!”

He nearly felt his patience finally slip away, but like a thread dangling on the edge, he hooked onto it, and held it tightly.

“I said, Detective Reed was dealing with some health issues, Sir.”

“What kind of health issues?”

Nines was grateful this call had been off-camera, otherwise, Captain Fowler would’ve seen the uncertainty displayed all over his face, and his blaring red LED light, indicative of the fact that he was about to lie…

He sighed, “Detective Reed had severe flu-like symptoms, and after completing a bio-scan on him, I came to the conclusion that he was indeed coming down with the flu, Sir.”

Fowler huffed, though Nines sensed he was buying the lie nicely. “Well then,” he said gruffly, shifting about and then moving some papers around on the other end of the line, “I guess that serves him just fine for being such a dick to everyone all the time and disobeying me for years, now!!”

Nines hummed, “Yes, years overdue, I’d say.”

The door to the drawing room suddenly squeaked, and Nines turned his head around to face whoever had been listening in on his conversation with Captain Fowler. There was nothing but darkness behind him, and his desk chair, the desk itself, his drawings and artwork, posters, and other information surrounding the case had been untouched and undisturbed in the room.

Still uneasy, Nines stood to his feet, scanning and searching all corners of the room for the spy. He was completely convinced someone had been spying here, but whoever it was, they were long gone, and they hadn’t left behind any traces of evidence behind. Nothing in the room had even been moved, and there weren’t any hair or fingerprint traces anywhere, also…perhaps it had just been the house making noises, and he let it get to him due to the fact that he’d already been lying to Captain Fowler.

Yes, he deduced that this was the best and most logical explanation, and he knew it was time to end the call.

“Nines?”

Had Captain Fowler asked him something?? He surely hoped not, as it would make him appear more incompetent than he already seemed due to the day’s events…

“Sir,” he stated coldly and seriously, “if there isn’t anything further to add and discuss, I have to get back to work.”

Fowler grunted dismissively, “No, there ain’t anything else, Nines, but just make sure that this doesn’t become a repeat incident, and try to make sure Gavin feels better, alright?”

Nines almost growled, but then Fowler cut him off abruptly. “You’re supposed to be taking care of him, Nines, remember?”

Yes, he remembered fully well what his part in this entailed, and he could’ve gone without the reminder all the time.

He pinched the bridge of his nose, “Yes Sir, I remember.”

“Just see to it that you always do.”

“Indeed.”

Fowler hissed, “Goodnight, Nines.”

“Goodnight, Sir.”

Captain Fowler didn’t even cut the call off gently; he slammed his phone down and it made Nines grind his teeth as he sighed in irritation from having his audio receptors buzz lightly.

“I wish he wouldn’t do that…”

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Shelley gently shoved her round head in through the tiny crack Gavin had left in his door for her to easily slide back into his room when she was finished recording Nines’ conversation. The Nano-Bot floated into the room as Gavin sat cross-legged on his bed, and he smiled as he waved her over.

“Shelley, hey!!” she crooned at his whispers, hovering by the edge of the bed, but he saw that despite her greatest efforts, it was almost impossible for her to float up by his side on the large, high bed. This upset him, and he wanted to do something about it.

He tapped on the mattress, “Shelley, I’m gonna get you up here, okay?”

Beeeep! Beeeep!!!

“Just…don’t freak out or anything…gonna just grab you for one second…” he leaned down to the side over the bed, and gently and very slowly lowered his hands down to her sides.

She tilted her head up at him, reading the gestures and hints, and she floated up as high as she could, barely brushing his fingers.

He smiled, “Don’t worry, gonna help you, girl.” Gavin then wrapped his hands and fingers around her little body, and he gently lifted her up into the air, moving her over to float up beside him while he got comfortable once again as he sat flatly down.

“Taaadaaaa!” he sang out, smiling cheerfully at her while she purred.

Suddenly, her holographic feature kicked in, and she presented a clip of an audience sitting down and giving a joyful round of applause.

Gavin snickered as he did a mock bow, “Thank you, thank you,” he chuckled, “t’was nothin’ on my end, really.”

He paused, then, making sure that Nines was still downstairs-which he was as he moved about, and his footsteps thundered around somewhere by the kitchen. Perfect.

Gavin grabbed a pillow and laid it flatly down on the mattress, and he placed his chest on it as he kicked his feet up and grabbed his laptop that had been lying beneath the bed. Placing it before him, he started it up and got even more comfortable, digging his hips into the soft mattress as he let out a content sigh.

Turning to Shelley, he winked at her, “So, give me the goods, gorgeous!”

She tilted her head at him, and he let his laptop load up to the screensaver and background images.

“Can you please play the recording for me, Shelley?” he was already navigating to his twitter page and other social media, not having checked them since he arrived at Nines’ mansion, “I’m just checking my social media profiles, but I’m listening!!”

Ignoring how horrible this all felt-given the fact that he had taken advantage of his husband’s privacy, Gavin walked towards his bedroom door and firmly locked and shut it before plopping down beside Shelley on the bed again. He saw and heard her going over the recording; her light flashing orange, and then yellow.

“Recording. Ready. Recording. Playback!”

He pressed his index finger over his lips as he loaded up his internet page, “Shhh, not so loud, girl,” he frowned, “and tell me what the damn Wi-Fi password here is, too!”

She purred, “Retrieving. Wi-Fi. Password. Password. Set. To. Ignoramus. Detective!”

Gavin nearly slapped himself in mortification. _“Of course Nines would set it to that shit…stupid smug prick!!”_

He still typed it in, and once it went through and connected, Gavin immediately went to his twitter page. He had been clever and wise enough not to post anything recent, but he was bored enough out of his mind to at least want to take a gander at what the world-otherwise known as his followers-had been saying about him, and about other things in general.

The internet was extremely fast in the large mansion, and while Gavin cupped a hand beneath his chin as he went through his twitter page, Shelley played back what she’d recorded from Nines’ conversation.

 _“This is a first for you, Nines,”_ Fowler’s voice sounded right off the bat angry, but thankfully, Shelley had lowered the volume quite a lot, but Gavin was still able to hear everything perfectly fine.

 _“I do apologize, Captain,”_ Nines spoke softly, _“it was something I couldn’t avoid.”_

“Riiiight,” Gavin wheezed, looking down to his last tweet and then signing out when nothing important had been updated or found.

 _“I made you in charge of the narcotics unit for a reason, Nines!”_ Fowler screamed through, and Gavin winced as he shook his head.

“Well,” he snickered to himself, “Nines only got the position because he’s a spoiled, pampered dickhead, and he never passed with any _real_ fuckin’ talent, that’s how.”

 _“…I know you’re one of the best, Nines,”_ Gavin kept his ears on the conversation, but he moved on to his Facebook page, which hadn’t been updated or had anything posted on it for almost a little over four months. Not that he really cared, but he was at least a little curious to check up on some friends, engage in drama, read their posts if they so happened to share news of their relationship struggles and issues for the world to see…that sort of thing.

He scrolled through at least fifty cat videos and photos, feeling his eyes watering as he remembered his own cat being killed by Ouroboros.

Gavin wiped his eyes as he sniffled, “You fucking dicks…”

_“Noooo I’m not gonna cry!! I’m not!!”_

He instead focused more on the recording, his watery eyes floating up to the top of his Facebook homepage where he saw he had a few new friend requests-all mostly from relatives he didn’t want to talk to, and a few spam accounts with no profile photos.

_“It was a simple task, Nines! Just investigate the Saunder property, report back to me, and then finish the day with whatever the fuck it is you do!!! Is that too much to ask?!?!”_

Nines’ voice came out deeply, _“No Sir, it is not.”_

Gavin rolled his eyes as he ignored the friend requests, “Ufffhhh, ‘no sir, no sir, no sir’,” he shook his head as his eyes dried, “no sir my little foot!”

 _“Damn right it ain’t!!”_ Fowler roared, and it made Gavin smirk. _“Yeah, you show ‘em who’s boss, Cap.”_ Something about Nines _finally_ getting screamed at made him feel so warm and fuzzy inside…

_“I expected you to be back with Gavin, Nines, and what did you do?? You disappointed me by ditching and probably going off somewhere to argue or fight with Gavin-just as you usually do!!”_

Gavin looked at his inbox, next, noticing that he hadn’t responded to messages from his mother and sister, but he ignored them when he saw a brand-new message that had lined itself up above all the other regular chat threads he’d held with regular contacts…

Nines mumbled then _, “That wasn’t the case; Detective Reed was dealing with a health issue, Sir.”_

_“What was that, Nines?!?!”_

Woah.

Gavin turned away from the laptop screen, staring over at Shelley with wide eyes. His jaw dropped open, and he pointed at her with a shaky hand.

“He…h-he lied?! He _lied_??!?”

She merely tilted her head, the recording still on-going.

_“I said, Detective Reed was dealing with some health issues, Sir.”_

Gavin held onto the laptop as he gasped, “No fuckin’ way…holy sh-shit, Nines lied!!?!? What the hell?!?! Why????”

Still not trusting it, Gavin’s mind supplied the answer. _“He just wants to save his own android ass and avoid disciplinary action; don’t read too much into it, dipshit.”_

 _“What kind of health issues?”_ Fowler pressed on, and Gavin listened intently.

_“Detective Reed had severe flu-like symptoms, and after completing a bio-scan on him, I came to the conclusion that he was indeed coming down with the flu, Sir.”_

Gavin pressed a hand up to his mouth, “No fuckin’ way…he didn’t tell Fowler about the Slo-Freeze??!! How??!! Why?!??!”

This was extremely unbecoming of Nines, and Gavin asked Shelley to rewind the conversation recording and go over it all again, just in case he had missed something. When it all played back the same way as the first time, he gripped his stomach tightly, his heart slamming repeatedly in his chest as his eyes widened more and more.

_“He lied…did he lie for me, or for himself?!”_

Not able to locate the answer to his own question, Gavin’s mind pulled him back to the new message sitting in his inbox.

It had been sent almost three days ago, around 11:49 PM as well. It was just a short, brief little message that served as an introduction or a greeting of sorts, but that wasn’t what made Gavin nearly fall off his bed in shock and worry.

What made him nearly have a heart attack and a seizure was the fact that the message read out:

**Hey, can we talk?**

And more importantly, it was sent to him from Raoul Spencer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy shite, Nines lied for Gavin?!?!?!?!  
> WHY!?!?!  
> And eff off, Raoul -_- now's sooooooooo not the time.  
> Also, kudos for Shelley being so cute and naughty!!! She's honestly becoming such a little devil and a cutie <3


	19. Perilous Projects and Dates

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nines, I love Mozart, too!!!  
> Link for MY favorite rendition of 'Madamina, il catalogo e questo' : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uJjHVTCm4HE

It was definitely Raoul, alright. Not only was his Facebook profile name labeled as such, but when Gavin quickly visited his profile, he was faced with the same man he’d bumped into at the grocery store not even half a week ago. Yep, it was Raoul he saw in the display photo with his dark green eyes, and short, wavy dirty-blonde hair.

In his current profile photo, he was wearing a basketball jersey, black shorts which showed off his long-toned legs, and black Nike running shoes. He was posed with two other guys, but they had been slightly cropped out of the photo, as Raoul was the center-piece of the picture.

His cover photo on his Facebook profile was one of himself and his son, Paul. Paul was much younger in this photo than when Gavin had seen him in the grocery store, however, and he was wearing bright blue shorts, matching blue and yellow sandals, with an orange t-shirt. His hair was surprisingly quite long, and it almost hit his little shoulders. He was hoisted up on his dad’s shoulders, and his little fists were buried in Raoul’s hair as the man smiled at the camera while holding onto Paul’s little stubby legs. They must’ve taken the photo in a park or something, as there was plenty of sunlight in the background shining down on their heads, and a few birds sitting in their nests on the tops of trees were also visible in the photo.

It was a very charming photo, to say the least, and Gavin went through a few more slowly before he read some of Raoul’s posts on his Facebook timeline.

Apparently, in the month of February of the year 2027, Raoul had gotten engaged to his then-wife, Anne Marie Lorde. She was a tall, athletic cheerleader type with long red hair, and she totally seemed to be Raoul’s type of girl. Their marriage hadn’t lasted too long, as Raoul’s photos with her grew infrequent until she had had Paul. But then, after a few more awkward family photos and Christmas posts, Raoul’s relationship status had gone from ‘married’ to ‘single’ in the year 2038.

_“Ahhh, so he hadn’t lied about his relationship status, I guess…wait…why the fuck do I care??”_

Frowning at himself, Gavin clicked out of Raoul’s family pictures, and moved on to an album tilted: _‘New Year, New Me!’_

Something in his gut screamed at him not to go further, judging by the first photo in the set. It was of Raoul wearing nothing but a beach towel wrapped tightly around his waist. Unfortunately, Gavin was beyond curious, and although his curiosity began as a ‘how much more of a well-built body does Raoul have in comparison to me?’, it soon turned into ‘how good does he look as he runs along the shores of the beach while wearing a speedo?’

As Gavin clicked through the photos one-by-one, they got a lot more ‘carnal’ and slightly lewd. In the first two, Raoul was simply having a drink as he relaxed under a large blue umbrella. The others were of him being shoved and smothered in the sand as his son Paul buried him under while also making a small sand castle near him.

Gavin suppressed a giggle, but his giggle died away when he saw that Raoul was flexing in the next photo, and he had the most perfectly chiseled abs and pecs Gavin had ever seen. His chest was strong, his shoulders were broad, his body was perfectly in proportion, and his hips and lower abs were perfectly shaped in a ‘V’ shape beneath his shorts…

Gavin quickly slammed the laptop lid down as he turned away from the photo and faced Shelley. Her light was red, and she tilted her head at him, her legs folding in and out from beneath her body slowly, as if she had been scolding him in her own way.

Gavin rolled his eyes at her while grabbing his phone, “Hey, don’t you judge me!”

She merely let out a series of deep humming noises while she hovered by his side.

Quickly, Gavin opened up the Facebook Messenger app on his phone, and he went back to his inbox. Tapping Raoul’s message open, for a moment, Gavin’s finger hovered over the ‘delete conversation’ option, and he nearly pressed down on it when the little green circle by Raoul’s profile picture turned up, indicating that he was online just now.

Gavin nearly dropped his phone, but he moved back towards his pillows as he stared down at the screen intently. In fact, he was staring so hard, that he was surprised his phone hadn’t cracked. He didn’t know what to do, and for a moment, considering how Raoul had so easily found his Facebook profile and had messaged him days ago made Gavin want to block him, but then again, Raoul hadn’t done or said anything wrong…he just wanted to reach out and talk!!

A dark shadow fell over his phone, and Gavin looked up to see Shelley’s head tilted down at the phone while her light was still red.

“Oh come on,” Gavin hissed at her, not wanting to be scolded by her, on top of everything else. Why did he need to feel badly for just talking?? “There’s nothing wrong with just some friendly, casual talking, Shelley!” Even though he tried ushering his words out with some confidence, his excitement and said confidence dampened, but he covered it up by clearing his throat noisily.

Apparently, she disagreed, and she let him know so as she circled around his phone angrily, emitting what resembled to be little growls.

Ignoring her, Gavin began texting out his reply.

_“Just gonna keep it short, simple, and sweet. Nothing more, nothing less!”_

**Gavin R: hey…whats up?**

There. That was a good enough of a start. Perhaps a little awkward, but still good! He leaned back, and in no time, Raoul was already composing his message, as the three little dots at the bottom of the chat window presented themselves.

His reply came after a minute or so.

**Raoul: hey, sorry if it was weird for me to reach out to you like this…your twitter page wasn’t too active.**

_“So he’s checked ALL my social media??? That’s kinda…that’s kinda odd…”_

Another reply was sent in a few seconds.

**Raoul: how’ve u been?**

**Gavin R: umm…fine?** He frowned as he began writing the next part of his message. **What the fuck do you wan—**

 _“No…that’s way too rude.”_ He deleted that and started over. Shelley seemed to disapprove of the fact that he’d deleted the unnecessarily impolite message, but Gavin ignored her protests.

**Gavin R: so what did u want 2 talk 2me about??**

Leaning back on his pillows, Gavin bit and chewed on his lower lip, feeling a little weird for talking to Raoul when he was married…but this wasn’t cheating, and his relationship wasn’t real at all! So then why did this feel like it was an act of infidelity?

 _“Because he has a hot body,”_ his mind supplied, and Gavin nearly punched himself in the face.

_“NO, RAOUL SPENCER DOES NOT HAVE A HOT BODY, SHUT THE HELL UP AND WE ARE SOOOOO NOT GOING THERE.”_

His phone vibrated, and he almost shut it off, not wanting to read what Raoul had texted him. For some reason, anticipating his response was worse than reading it, and Gavin tried snapping out of it as he forced himself to look down at the words waiting for him on the screen.

**Raoul: was just tired. Paul’s with his mother, and he’s gonna be with her for a bit, but I was wondering if you maybe wanted to have a couple of drinks with me tomorrow?**

_“Is he…is he asking me out on a date?!??! A DATE?!?!?”_

What the actual fuck?! Was Raoul really asking this?!

He quickly texted back, **Raoul, you do know im married, right????**

_“What’s up with this guy?!?”_

The response came a few seconds later, and Gavin had to wipe his eyes as he glared down at the phone.

**Raoul: Reed, you do know im not gay, right? Lol**

_“God damn it…now I look desperate AND crazy!! What a great combination!!”_

Resisting the urge to really slap himself silly, Gavin bit down his mortification, knowing he was blushing redder than an apple, and he ignored Shelley as she let out a low ‘beep’ while he responded quickly to Raoul, wanting this all to be over with right now.

**Gavin R: right…sorry…yeah umm…sure? You pick the bar; I don’t usually work Saturdays anyway.**

Something at the back of his brain told him to tell Nines, or at least ask if he could bring him along. It wasn’t that Nines could even drink; something just felt so wrong about having a chat with a recently-divorced attractive man when Gavin knew he was gay and very touch-starved!! Honesty had always been his policies in relationships-not that he had any with guys, really-but he didn’t know how to exactly ask Nines…the android was already beyond pissed and disappointed in him for the Slo-Freeze incident, and asking about this and having to answer a million questions Nines threw at him? Nah…forget asking.

He was a grown man, after all! So what if he was married? Why did he have to ask permission to go anywhere?!?! He wasn’t doing anything wrong or bad! He was just having a few drinks, catching up with an old classmate, and who knows? Perhaps he could make a new friend!! There wasn’t anything bad about these things at all, and Gavin made up his mind in mere seconds about how to proceed.

Realizing he had been thinking for a while and had gotten lost in his thoughts, his phone vibrated many times, and Shelley even flicked her sharp, barbed tail at it while she waited to see what he would respond to Raoul with.

Gavin’s fingers slipped a few times, and he could barely hold the phone as he read out Raoul’s messages.

**Raoul: u there? Hope i didn’t offend you…  
hello? im sorry if i was rude**

Gavin sighed and whispered to himself, “Get it together, Gav.” He hurriedly responded, before Raoul thought something was wrong with him.

**Gavin R: yah sorry, i was just kinda interrupted with something.**

He looked up, throwing Shelley a disgruntled look, and she didn’t appreciate it a lot as she flicked her tail up and down while her light flashed red, and then orange a few times. Gavin held up a hand to shield his eyes away from it as he felt his phone vibrating.

**Raoul: oh…thats good, i thought ur husband was there lol!**

Once again, Gavin felt horrible. He’d never ever seen or heard of anyone in his family cheating on their partner or spouse, and the small, minor relationships Gavin had had in high school and college while figuring out his real sexual orientation had even dealt him a lucky hand of never being cheated on or having cheated himself. As far as he was concerned, he was as loyal to partners as he was to his co-workers in his workplace and duties, and this seemed…just horrible.

He was literally sitting in Nines’ home, under _his_ roof, in a room _he_ technically owned, on top of a bed _he_ had purchased, and he was plotting something behind _his_ back. This was just foul and so, so very wrong, but for some reason, Gavin couldn’t say ‘no’ to Raoul. He was either insane, or possessed, and he had no idea which of the two it happened to be, but needless to say, his fingers still pressed on the letters, and in no time, the sentence was formed.

**Gavin R: nah, my husband’s working, we’re good.**

Shelley this time headbutted him, and Gavin nearly dropped his phone when her round head smashed into his forehead. He cradled his semi-injured head as he hissed out in pain while scowling furiously at her.

“Shelley?!?! The heck is wrong with you, girl?!?!”

BEEEEEEEEP!!!! BOOOOOOP!!! She flew forward at him once more, heading right for the center of Gavin’s forehead this time, but he cleverly ducked, and she nearly crashed into his pillow. He rolled over to the side, phone still in his hand as he got off the bed while Raoul’s next message was delivered to him.

Gavin waved a finger at the irate Shelley, “No thank you, girl,” he shook his head next, “I know you’re very protective over me, but I assure you honey, I got this!”

He read Raoul’s message quickly, before Shelley could make noise or do something else to interrupt and distract him.

**Raoul: cool, so ill message u tomorrow sometime after 6, k?**

BEEEEEEEEEEP!!!!!!! BLEEEEEEEEP!!!

Gavin immediately texted out: **sure, gtg for now, cya**

Raoul’s response came half a second later: **goodnight, Reed.**

Closing the Facebook messenger app, Gavin threw his phone down onto the bed as he held his hands up before Shelley as if she had a dangerous weapon pointed right at him. He glared at her when she ceased her beeping.

“Whaaaaaaaaaat?!?!”

She merely hovered in the air as she spun around in a few circles, her little makeshift antenna ears twitching slightly. If Gavin didn’t know any better, he would’ve assumed she was beyond pissed with him. She had every right to be, but as far as he was concerned, he hadn’t done anything wrong, and he was willing to defend that to the grave…somewhat.

He held his head up high as he snorted down at her, “I’m not doing anything, Shelley; just catching up with an old friend! What’s the big deal anyway??”

Booooooop!!!!!!!! Beeeeeeeep!

He waved her off, “Don’t be such a drama Queen!”

Beeeeeep!!!

“He’s straight, if you’re asking!”

………………..

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOP!

He rolled his eyes as he threw his hands up to the ceiling. “You’re impossible, Shelley.”

Before she could make another angry noise, Nines screamed up for Gavin, no doubt probably waiting down by the large, grand staircase railing.

“Detective!!” his loud voice rang out in the night, cutting like a sword through butter, “your presence is required downstairs in my office!!”

Gavin rolled his eyes, about to say something to Shelley as he pointed down at her, but he was interrupted once more by Nines.

“NOOOOOOOOW!!”

“Alright!!” he leapt up in fright, pushing his hair back as he made his way to the door. “Jesus Christ!!”

Before leaving, he turned and pointed at Shelley, “Don’t get into too much trouble while I’m gone.”

Tossing her a playful wink, he gently closed the bedroom door.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

_Madamina, il catalogo è questo,_

_Delle belle che amò il padron mio;_

_Un catalogo egli è che ho fatt'io;_

_Osservate, leggete con me!_

_Osservate, leggete con me!_

Gavin pushed open the office door, eyeing Nines-who was standing by the large black desk pressed against the left-hand wall when he walked in.

Loud opera was playing, and while Gavin thought he could’ve recognized the piece, he wasn’t too sure exactly, nor did he want to make a fool out of himself in front of Nines…or god forbid, spoil his husband’s wonderful taste in ‘art’…

He pointed at one of the speakers, “It’s lovely!!”

Lowering the volume a little, Nines spoke out, “Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, _Don Giovanni, Madamina, il catalogo è questo_ -otherwise known as the Catalogue Aria.”

Gavin nodded as the music continued on beautifully.

_In Italia seicento e quaranta;_

_In Alemagna duecento e trentuna;_

_Cento in Francia, in Turchia novantuna;_

_Ma in Ispagna son già mille e tre…_

_Mille e tre…_

_Mille e tre…_

Gavin nodded once again when there was a brief pause, and once Nines had been staring at him for far too long. “Errr, right…” he sat down on a small, three post chaise lounge. Gavin placed his feet on top of it, trying to get comfortable as he wormed his way up to the top of it, his back leaning against the wall behind the chaise lounge while Nines looked down at the contents of the desk before him.

He turned around and threw Gavin a nasty scowl that pinned Gavin where he remained. “Feet off the furniture, Detective.”

Gavin sighed, “I’m wearing clean socks, though!!”

“Get. Off. Now.”

Not wanting to argue, Gavin rolled his eyes as he got off the chaise lounge and instead sat in it properly as one was meant to do. He folded his hands between his thighs and grumbled under his breath deep at the back of his throat as he looked down angrily at the floor. Whatever the hell Nines wanted, he hoped they would be able to finish with it, fast.

Once Gavin was silent for a while, Nines hummed as he shoved a hand in his grey dress pants pocket, and then turned around and collected something off his desk. He held it out of Gavin’s view, however, and due to the secrecy of it all, Gavin began to worry about just what exactly it was that Nines wanted.

Perhaps…perhaps Nines had caught Shelley spying?? Oh dear god…he hoped that wasn’t the case at all, for if it were…oh, he didn’t even want to think about how livid Nines would be.

Gavin patiently waited, however, trying not to reveal how nervous and scared he was as he pressed both hands against his mouth and watched as Nines walked over to him and held out a tiny object.

Before Gavin’s eyeballs could take the image of whatever it was into his mind, Nines grabbed the black metal chair resting by his desk, and he sat down in it when he turned it around so he could face Gavin. He produced what was the tiniest little cylinder container Gavin had ever seen, and Nines held it up between his thumb and index finger. It glimmered in the lights above, and Gavin still had to squint to really focus his vision hard on it so he could see it properly.

It wasn’t a thing he could identify by sight alone, and he wasn’t going to bother relying on that as he shrugged at Nines while the android stared intently and blankly at him, perhaps waiting for a reaction from Gavin as far as ‘recognizing’ the item was concerned.

“I don’t know what that is,” Gavin spat uncouthly, “it’s just a fuckin’ empty container.”

Nines smirked while his eyes glittered malevolently, though it was an unfriendly smirk meant more so to belittle Gavin’s incompetence more than anything. “I thought as much,” he coldly spoke out as he himself turned the object over while still holding it, staring at it for a while before holding it out in front of Gavin once again.

“You rely far too heavily on your eyes; you limit yourself.”

Gavin snorted, “I need my eyes to _see_ , darling _husband_.”

Nines grinned again, though it seemed very forced and pained. He stood up, holding the cylinder container gently, and he motioned over towards the door. “Follow me.”

Not wanting to argue at this hour of the night, Gavin merely sighed as he too got up and allowed Nines to lead him all the way down past the dining room, and once they were at the far end of the room, Nines gently rubbed a hand against one of the bookcases, and it pushed back, revealing a little door in the wall only slightly taller than Gavin.

The other man gasped, “Holy shit…this is like a haunted house movie!”

Nines ignored him as he pressed the door open, still leading the way with his head raised up high and mighty like some King. Their footsteps automatically led them downwards, and Gavin’s eyes adjusted as best they could in the dark, but he allowed himself to be led by Nines’ bright blue LED light, and he saw that an old stairwell took them down into some kind of underground tunnel.

“Wow,” he whistled as he let out a soft chuckle, “did you build this yourself, Nines, or did the house come with this feature?”

His husband still ignored him, but slowed down as he pointed at the old stone walls, and Gavin saw little red arrows drawn crudely in red paint as they pointed straight ahead.

“This is the first-and only-time I’ll show you this path,” Nines vocalized unenthusiastically, “so learn it, memorize it, and rely on these arrows; the lighting here is nonexistent, and I am not going to be making a change to that just for your sake.”

Nodding wordlessly, Gavin peered down a particularly narrow corridor and looked at his directions. The same little red arrows egged him on. Gavin obeyed them, hunkering down into his shirt and wondering idly what life would be like for a claustrophobic person trapped down here. The corridors twisted and bent, going on for quite some time, throwing his sense of direction off completely, until his path emerged into a low-ceiling hall. There was a single door in front of him, marked with the word One singed into the wood. He waited right behind Nines, then, not wanting to touch things that weren’t his-especially unknown doors which he had no idea about and to where they led.

Nines turned around and stared down at Gavin, pressing a hand against the black handle of the door, which seemed far too old to be considered even remotely ‘modern’. The door opened under his knuckles with a loud groan.

He led the way, not bothering to turn back to Gavin as he hissed out like a serpent, “In here.”

The room beyond was icy cold, and much smaller than the usual ‘broom closet’ Gavin’s mind had conjured up when he was waiting outside with Nines. There were only three long desks from the front to the back, and a single thick, large, white plastic table was at the front of the room. It stood out among the wooden ones in the back, and it held many interesting things upon it. This table bore lab equipment Gavin recognized immediately from the Forensic and Narcotics Investigation team back at the DPD precinct. What was it doing here, however?!

He frowned, scratching his forehead as he gazed at the numerous photos plastered on a whiteboard above the plastic table, majority of the photos zooming in on damaged and badly burned body parts of unidentified people, with numbers drawn crudely on the top-right-hand corner of them. Other X-ray photos were strewn about on the walls as well, which were made up of the same kind of stone Gavin remembered seeing in the tunnels and corridors before they entered the room. There were strange jars on shelves mounted within the walls bearing some kind of lime-green and yellow viscous fluid. Little lamps were spaced out randomly on the desks and within the walls, but they were so old that they held within their shades and covers plenty of dust, a few dead flies, and would often flicker once or twice.

The entire room had a very creepy and eerie feeling to it, and it made Gavin’s stomach clench up as he felt nausea float in him as he tried making out what exactly the strange fleshy things were within the jars. He luckily didn’t have too much of a chance to think on it, for Nines shut the large wooden door on them and gently brushed past Gavin.

“Come.”

_“A man of many words, he is.”_

Gavin sighed as he trailed behind Nines. They stopped when they stood before a brand-new white microscope, though Nines didn’t place the container underneath it, yet. He instead turned and threw a strange look of contempt over at Gavin.

“Before we examine this,” he stated as he held up the cylinder shape up to Gavin’s eyes crudely, “would you like to estimate as to what the identity of this object could be?”

Gavin growled mutinously, “Nines, it’s past midnight, and you’re choosing to play 21 Questions with me right now?” he laughed a dry laugh, “Christ, you’re a bastard sometimes, aren’t you?”

Taking that as a ‘no’, Nines merely turned around coolly, and he beckoned Gavin over with a finger as he got to work placing the cylinder right on the flat stage of the microscope and beneath the eyepiece lens. He stepped aside once his skilled fingers had adjusted the diaphragm to pour just enough light over the piece, and he selected an objective lens that zoomed in on the object and magnified it by 40%.

He pointed at the microscope once it was ready, “Take a look for yourself.”

Gavin grumbled, but leaned forward and peered down through the ocular lens. He didn’t see much at first, but Nines stood by him, crossing his arms over his chest as he studied Gavin.

“What do you see?”

Gavin drummed his fingers on the plastic desk, “Well it’s made up of glass; that’s what I can see now…”

“Good, what else?”

He was about to scream out to Nines that there wasn’t anything else, and that he was beyond tired and in dire need of rest, when he saw a few drops of turquoise-colored liquid…it then bounced like a jelly bean, forming and gathering in a mass-solid shape, pressing against the glass prison it was confined in.

Nearly leaping right out of his skin, Gavin yelped as he pointed down at the cylinder with a trembling hand, “The hell!!!?? Why does it move?!”

Nines smiled coldly, “Because it can sense your blood close by, Detective.”

Gavin’s jaw dropped, and quivered, “Is it…is it…?”

“What do you think it is, now?”

He knew very well. “It’s Slo-Freeze!!!”

Nines nodded, studying the turquoise fluid as he spoke calmly, “This substance is kept within the square container you found back at the Saunder residence, and within that, is the cylinder glass where the Slo-Freeze is often stored carefully.”

Gavin didn’t want to look back into the ocular lens, but he did, and once again, he saw the Slo-Freeze moving around like it was alive, shifting from side-to-side and then rolling around its confined space as if it wanted to get out and escape so desperately.

“Since you never have observed it this up-close before,” Nines continued, “I will explain how it injected itself into your veins.”

Stepping away for a moment, Nines withdrew from a small plastic bag Gavin hadn’t even seen him storing in his back pocket, the square outer container of the Slo-Freeze. As if it would bite him just from staring at it, Gavin moved away, almost hiding behind the other side of the plastic table as he glared at the square container.

Nines noticed his anxiety, and rolled his eyes, as if it were a huge inconvenience to him more than anything else. “It’s not lethal right now, Detective,” he hissed with contempt, “in fact, this dose was merely meant to ‘test’ you before breaking you in, as opposed to leaving deleterious effects…”

Gavin sneered, “It’s still fuckin’ creepy is what it is!” he looked into Nines’ eyes, then, “just tell me how it works, before I throw up!”

“How dramatic of you,” Nines started, looking down at the liquid as he stood back and crossed his arms over his chest. “Detective,” he smiled coldly, “think of the drug as Hirudo medicinalis…” he paused, sighing in exhaustion when Gavin threw him a very confused stare.

“…a leech, Detective Reed,” he spat shortly, “it’s like a leech, given how leeches are known for attaching themselves to a host with a sucker and feeding on blood.”

Gavin grew pale, and he pressed a hand against his abdomen as the room spun. “Fuckin’ lovely,” he groaned, “I swear, I’m gonna really throw up, now.”

Ignoring his complaints and discomfort, Nines studied the box, turning it about on his palm as he pushed and poked at it with an index finger. The ‘needle-sharp’ points that had pierced through Gavin’s skin were still ejected and standing out, and they faced Gavin when Nines held his hand up to his eyes.

“As you can see,” Nines calmly presented, “it’s not just an open-and-shut-case of inject the drug immediately…no,” he shook his head and smiled almost appreciatively over the creation, “…the user needs to be injected first with a burst of a paralyzing agent, which is an inoculation otherwise known as Propofol-or commonly referred to in pharmaceutical companies as Diprivan.”

Gavin nodded, “Okay, so what does that shit do, actually?”

“It is responsible for behaving as a short-acting medication that results in a decreased level of consciousness and lack of memory for events. Its uses include the starting and maintenance of general anesthesia, sedation for mechanically ventilated adults, and procedural sedation doctors and surgeons typically use for patients undergoing heavy operation.”

Gavin pressed a hand on the top of his head. This was all too much to take suddenly, and he closed his eyes as he tried remembering what he’d been doing before the drug injected itself into his system. Strangely, his mind drew a big, blank wall, and it hurt to even try and think to remember everything. He just couldn’t do it at all.

When he opened his eyes, Nines had placed a hand on his hip as he casually leaned against the table whilst casting him blank stares he was unable to read.

“I know it’s confusing for you, Detective Reed,” Nines stated plainly, eyes moving over Gavin’s face slowly, as if seeing him for the first time.

“However,” he continued while holding up a hand, “I have a perfectly rational theory as for why Ouroboros use ‘leeching’ methods in Slo-Freeze…”

Gavin knew he wasn’t going to like what he was about to hear, but for the sake of the investigation progressing, and for the sake of saving future and potential victims, Gavin willed himself to put up with this lecture and just listen.

Once he was sure he had his undivided attention, Nines drawled on. “Medicinal leeches have been used for clinical bloodletting for at least 2,500 years. Ayurvedic texts describe their use for bloodletting in ancient India and in ancient Greece. You see, bloodletting was practiced according to the theory of humors—” Nines paused, giving off an exhausted sigh when Gavin frowned in confusion.

“Dear me, Detective,” Nines whispered softly-but with a tinge of anger just bubbling beneath his words, “did you sleep through all of your chemistry and history lessons?” Nines’ glare carried so much disdain that Gavin wanted to slap him for it.

Instead, he merely shrugged all the anger off his shoulders. “I took an introductory course in Medieval Studies…does that count?”

Nines blinked once; expression unreadable. “You are an imbecile.”

Gavin scowled at him, “I swear! We talked about it in Medieval studies courses!! That’s when they were practicing with leeches, you goon!”

Nines scowled back. “No it wasn’t…” he paused, head tilted as he spat out, “idiot”, just for good measure.

Gavin rolled his eyes, but let Nines explain to him what he didn’t know.

“Prior to the 19th century, medical practice was based largely on what ancient Greeks termed ‘the four humors,’ an idea formally introduced by Hippocrates way back in the fourth and fifth century B.C. The four humors were thought to be sanguine-blood, choleric- or yellow bile, melancholic, or black bile, and phlegmatic-otherwise known as phlegm. Their composition within the body was considered to determine a patient’s personality and health concerns. Every human body was thought to contain some measure of each of these humors.”

Gavin nodded as he took this all in. “Okay, and the leeches were used for…?”

Frowning, Nines continued, “Bloodletting using leeches enabled physicians to restore balance if blood was present in excess. It was noted that from the medicinal use of leeches in ancient Rome, they were often used for gout, and that patients became _addicted_ to the treatment. Leeches were used in medicine from ancient times until the 19th century to draw blood from patients. In modern times, leeches find medical use in treatment of joint diseases such as epicondylitis and osteoarthritis, extremity vein diseases, and microsurgery, while hirudin is a valuable drug for some blood-clotting disorders.”

Gavin wasn’t stupid. He had picked up on the hint that Nines had slyly and cleverly thrown in there. It was present within the way he said the word ‘addicted’. He nodded as he pushed back a few fallen, stray bangs away from his eyes and forehead.

“So therein lies the addiction, I guess,” he offered softly, his voice barely hovering in the air between them as Nines moved away from the table and the microscope.

Staring at Gavin with a bit of a new expression Gavin still had trouble deciphering and understanding, Nines huffed, “It goes even far beyond that, Detective Reed,” he motioned at the table, “we need to dissect it, document it well, and test it for the purposes of re-creation.”

Gavin frowned at him, “Can’t you ask your fancy druggie team to do that for you?!?”

Nines merely shrugged it off, “I technically could, though I am not inclined to at the moment, Detective,” he sneered cruelly, “seeing as you were one who stumbled upon it, I think it should count as your find, and therefore; your study.”

“The hell!” Gavin cried out angrily, “I didn’t just ‘stumble’ upon it on my own! A Corgi puppy found it and was about to chomp on it!!”

Nines sneered derisively in response. “I don’t care if Aleister Crowley himself rose from his grave and personally handed it to you, Detective,” he threw back as he took a step towards Gavin, eyes suddenly menacing, dark, and very serious. “For the time being, however, you _will_ work on what you can find and discover from Slo-Freeze-by my assistance, of course-and only when we’ve made some progress, we can involve my team. Otherwise, I’m not wasting time and resources.” His tone dripped with condescension, and was acerbic, as if he were explaining to a none-too-bright child instead of an adult.

He spun around, making his way briskly back out the door, when Gavin called out at his back loudly, “You may not be wasting their time, but you’re totally okay with wasting _mine_.”

This made Nines pause, and he turned, gripping the door handle in one hand, and throwing Gavin an utmost foul sneer. It turned into a cruel grin, however, spreading across Nines’ face widely like a growing illness until it had completely taken over his entire face.

“You have oodles of time to be wasted, Detective Reed,” Nines spat, “however, if you find yourself at your wits end from being conflicted about engaging in your dull social obligations, then you should best get started on this task earlier, _husband of mine_.”

The door softly closed with a gentle click, after that, and Gavin nearly doubled over in both uneasiness and anger coiling in the pit of his stomach.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So much sarcasm, so much mystery, and seriously, face palming at Gavin for taking up Raoul's offer to go out for drinks -_- World's Greatest Detective award goes to....  
> Also, 'cock-blocking' Shelley is best Shelley. Hands down.


	20. Arrogance and Symbols

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Weekends with the hubby have never been better ;)

Saturday morning had arrived. This wasn’t the first weekend Gavin had remained in Nines’ mansion, but seeing as he’d been married a little over a week ago, he hadn’t fully been able to properly enjoy his weekend as he would’ve liked to. This Saturday was going to be a lot different, however; he was going to have a few drinks with Raoul, and Gavin made a promise to himself to at least get some work on the case done before he borrowed time to hang out with Raoul. This way, he could enjoy his time with Raoul with a piece of mind and a clear conscience that he hadn’t wasted the days away.

He was almost awake when the bedroom door banged open again, and Nines waltzed proudly in with his hands clasped behind his back. Shelley floated in behind him a few seconds later, her light a soft baby blue color as she hovered by Gavin’s bedside. The rude wake-up call hadn’t scared him though, as he felt he was finally getting used to Nines barging into his room like a wild bull on the odd day or so.

“I would wish you a ‘good morning’, Detective Reed,” Nines began nonchalantly, “but you aren’t exactly ‘deserving’ of what entails a good morning, in actuality.” He made his way over to the curtains, pushing them aside and allowing mild sunlight to flood in the room like a heavy tide. Nines turned back to Gavin, eyeing him cautiously as Gavin put on the clean sweater he had draped over the little night table closest to him. It was a bit of a chilly morning, but he was ready to face it anyway as he cracked his knuckles and neck, stretching a little here and there as he got up.

Nines winced as he stared at him while he stretched his hands up above his head towards the ceiling, and Shelley merely purred as she too floated up as high as she could, though she only came up to his thighs. Whenever Gavin stretched, she seemed to do the same, almost imitating his movements and motions as she purred and made little noises.

“Cease your infernal stretching, Detective,” Nines spat out quickly, walking over towards Gavin and looming over him menacingly, “it is a sickening sight to see you mending and bending your body as if you were some exotic contortionist.”

Gavin sighed, already tired even though he’d just woken up, “Do you _have_ to insult me before I’ve even had my coffee??”

Nines only showed his white, sharp teeth, “You could do with a shave, too, I think.”

Gavin yawned, scratching at his five-o’clock shadow. “Guess so…”

Shelley stood between them, whirring and purring as she watched them carefully with her one eye.

Gavin looked down at her and waved, “Good morning sweetie! How’re you—”

He was interrupted by Nines scoffing, “Your attachment to that machine is rising to levels of ad nauseam, Detective.”

Gavin merely shrugged, “Better to be attached to her than you, eh Nines?”

Not bothering to stick around for Nines’ next insult, Gavin walked over to the linen closet, grabbed a fresh towel, and was already getting ready for a shower and a shave. Nines trailed behind him, his dark clothes billowing in the wind and breeze floating in through the windows as he glared at the back of Gavin’s head.

“Detective,” he blurted out hurriedly, “have you drawn your own theories for why Slo-Freeze can be compared to leeching and bloodletting methods as I mentioned last night?”

Gavin yanked open the bathroom door, nearly being blinded by the sun poking down into his eyes through the huge skylight above in the ceiling. He sighed, “I’m not an idiot, Nines,” he threw the towel on a large vanity and counter set, “I think Ouroboros fully believe that Slo-Freeze cleanses the body, much like people thought using leeches would help get rid of ‘tainted’ blood…” he looked up into Nines’ eyes, as if waiting for him to confirm or dispel his theory. He was met with nothing but contempt and coldness, unfortunately.

Nines still nodded, “Yes, for once we seem to agree on something, Detective.”

Gavin scratched at his stubbly face; eyebrows furrowed as thoughts hit him like stones being thrown into his face. “Still,” he sighed, “it doesn’t make a lot of sense as to why they kill people, torture people, maim people, oh!” he held up a finger, “and it sure as shit doesn’t explain why they fuckin’ killed my cat!!”

A grumble was his response from his husband. “Another monument to your immortalized stupidity, Detective Reed,” Nines spat viciously, “I believe I already stated that the preliminary targets are pets; a means to an end, no doubt, but a clever and supremely bold move taken towards psychologically wearing down the intended victim.”

Gavin huffed as pain once again flooded his mind and heart when he remembered his cat first having gone missing, and then having been bled out with its blood serving as paint for the crude message drawn up on his apartment walls.

“I don’t want to talk about this, Nines.” He spun around, opening the large, sliding glass doors of the shower stall, not bothering to care that Nines was directly behind him. Tossing his sweater off first, he then began pulling his shirt up and off his body. Suddenly, he heard Nines take in a sharp breath. Gavin nearly fell forward in shock when he heard the gasp emanating from Nines. Was his cold, stoic, taciturn husband really that daunted by a slight reveal of flesh??? No…impossible…

Gavin wheeled back around and lowered his shirt. Nines was staring off to the side, and his LED light was yellow. He seemed very uncomfortable, no matter how tall and proudly he tried standing. If he had been a human, Gavin wouldn’t have been surprised if he blushed…

But Nines didn’t blush; he merely stared at the walls in the bathroom until Gavin stepped in his field of vision. Nines still refused to meet his eyes, however, but at least he was staring at his chin…or maybe his chest? Whatever.

Gavin ran a hand through his hair just when Shelley also entered the bathroom. She flew around Nines and Gavin in slow, deliberate circles, like a shark stalking its prey before devouring it. She purred happily, and it made Gavin feel a little better, in spite of the weird shit that he still had to force himself to study and go through before he met up with…

Shit.

He needed to already be cleaning himself and shaving! That would take at least an hour and half!!!!!!

_“Time to get movin’!”_

He approached Nines, carefully and steadily pressing his hands against his chest, and he shoved the tall android backwards and out of the bathroom. Nines knocked into Shelley, pushing her back along with him, and Gavin merely smiled at them both widely and as politely as he could.

“Move it, folks!” he laughed, “I’ve got a lot of things to do, and ya’ll are in my waaayyyy!”

Nines glared at him, but Gavin slammed the door on his face. He pressed his back against it, just taking a moment to fully breathe in some fresh air before he looked down at his clothes.

He was a mess; he was slightly sweaty, stinky, and he reallllyyyyy needed that shave! A look at one of the three large mirrors in the spacious bathroom confirmed that for him, and Gavin shuddered at his appearance. It really was time to clean up!!

He was more than eager to get into the standing shower when he remembered the first few showers he’d had in the home, and his body practically begged for it and sought it out. Acquiescing to his physical needs, he disrobed, and Gavin was on cloud nine within minutes as steam fogged throughout the bathroom the moment he turned on the warm water.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

It was almost 10 a.m. when Gavin got out of the shower, and he made his way down the creepy, long, dark tunnels Nines had shown him the night before. He followed the marked red arrows until he was back in the same room holding the lab equipment and photos, and as he ignored the strange items in the murky glass jars, Gavin got to work on first examining the Slo-Freeze in its container. Nines had left it on the stage of the microscope, and Gavin studied its outer container before setting the small box to the side, shivering when he saw the two little sharp needles that had once been buried in his veins.

He studied the box and turquoise-colored liquid within it for almost forty-minutes, just taking down notes on the shape, its reaction whenever he tilted the cylinder container, and then he moved on to once again study the outer box it had been in when he first stumbled upon it. Taking a few more notes down, he lost himself in his work, and didn’t notice that Nines also swept in the room.

A flash of blackness before his eyes was what broke Gavin out of his concentration, and he looked up just in time to catch Nines in a brand-new pair of black jeans, black sneakers, and a long-sleeve, white button-up dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows. He looked a bit odd from the waist down, but Gavin didn’t have time to comment on it. He got back to his notes when Nines moved over to the front of the room, and he looked up and studied the photographs and X-rays for quite some time.

They didn’t say anything to each other for nearly another hour, and soon, Gavin had unconsciously sought out a desire to be away from Nines, and he had moved himself to sit on top of one of the long, rectangular desks. He crossed his legs atop it, his toes wiggling once he had removed his Converse sneakers. The cool air of the room hit his bare feet, and he nearly sighed in relief as he rubbed his aching wrists after having written so many notes down.

Nines noticed where he was seated, and he stood tall as he glared at Gavin from the front of the large room.

“Detective,” said Nines, and it was an ugly noise. “Get off the desk.”

“Or what?” Gavin threw back, almost without thinking.

“Or I can tell Captain Fowler about your neat little find,” Nines threatened, eyes twinkling in a small warning that didn’t go missed by Gavin.

Gavin grumbled, but slammed his notebook shut as he got off from the top of the desk and sat down on the low seating portion of it instead. Nines smirked in triumph.

“Speaking of,” Gavin’s voice hissed out no louder than that of a serpent’s as he draped an arm up and folded it so he could lean his head against his open-hand, “you still haven’t told me why you’re not sending what I found off for evidence.”

It was a good question. Gavin had been so confused regarding Nines’ behavior, that the question had been burning in his brain all night last night, and up until when he’d brought it up again. It just was so unbecoming of Nines to hide evidence away, but Gavin had a sneaking suspicion that Nines had only done this for a very, _very_ important reason.

He grinned up at his dour husband, arms crossed over his chest as he snickered, “Well?”

Nines relented. “Very well,” he leaned against the edge of the plastic, white table, “as you know, Detective, majority of the findings surrounding any case have to be submitted and recorded through a long, tedious process before evidence can even be used or taken from it…that is, _if_ the investigation team deems it noteworthy of lending their time, anyway.”

Moving some papers and documents around, Nines neatly organized them in a pile, and then paper-clipped them together as he continued explaining and justifying his actions. “Who knows how long it would’ve taken for the evidence to even be examined?” he shrugged as he continued, “by my estimates, it could’ve taken up to ten full months, at this rate, considering how this isn’t strictly a homicide or a kidnapping case where it requires immediate action. The more time we waste, the more calamitous the situation becomes.”

Nines had a point. They would only be wasting time and energy if they sat around and waited for the DPD to take care of the evidence. But how much progress could they really make on their own?? They were a two-person team!!

Gavin ran a hand over his jeans, wiping away his sweaty palms. “I’m not trained in narcotics though, Nines,” he reminded his husband, “sooner or later you’re gonna have to call up your boys and ask them to—”

“All in good time, my impatient husband,” Nines cooed out sarcastically, which made Gavin scowl deeply, “just concentrate on your part, and I will determine when it’s the right time to involve the team in this.”

Gavin let out a tired sigh, “So you’re gonna call the shots like you did with the suspect instead of trustin’ me?” he snorted, “you’re a slow learner, huh Nines?”

“As much as your condescending tone irritates me to no end, Detective Reed,” Nines drawled deeply, “I’m afraid you’ll have to wait for a rebuttal from me, as I have an incoming call awaiting my answer.”

He made his way past Gavin and out the door, missing the sarcastic curtsy Gavin gave him along the way.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

 **Notes:**  
  
**-Slo-Freeze paralyzes and relaxes users before its other effects kick in approximately 3.5 minutes later**  
**-history of drug? Unknown! (needs more research into chemical processes and their functions)**  
**-Greek Medicine roots (could a member-or leader of the gang-be Greek??)**  
**-possible blood cleansing/purification ritual? (reference to leeches?)**  
**-gradual eradication of the individual’s mind (long-term effects cause memory loss)**  
**-stripping away of the person’s actions, memories, thoughts (dehumanize them? Why?)**  
**-no ‘cure’ as of yet for the effects**  
**-can take up to a year to reverse the side-effects of the drug**  
**PURPOSE OF SUCH A DRUG???**

**…………?????????  
Possible zombification of humanity so Ouroboros can take over the world? **

_“Aaaaaaaaarrrg!! This is so stupid!! I can’t even think anymore!!!!”_

Gavin threw his notebook down on the surface of the desk he was sitting at, and he turned around, staring at the walls of the room in hopes that a clock was here somewhere so he could tell what time it was. Something internally told him it was almost noon, and as if agreeing, his stomach let out a deep rumble, demanding food right away.

Gavin looked at the door, swinging his legs from beneath the table top, and he just barely got to his feet, when the large wooden door burst open. Gavin nearly had a heart attack, but before he could throw a lovely manner of expletives at Nines, the android strolled in, holding up a black cellphone that thankfully wasn’t Gavin’s.

Gavin stared at it for a moment, then lifted a brow at Nines. “What the—”

He heard feminine shrieking on the other end of the line, and then Nines growled at him, “Talk to this hysterical woman right  _now_ , before I break this phone.”

Gavin pointed at himself, “You want me to—”

Nines shoved the phone into his chest, and Gavin fell back down on the bench seat of the desk, eyes wide with fear and worry. He slowly held the phone up to his ear.

“Umm…hello?”

…………….

“GAVIN REED! YOU UNGRATEFUL WHELP OF A CHILD!!!!!!”

He nearly sank into the floors. It was his mother, and she was _pissed._ She had been screaming at him just like she used to when he was young and had gotten into trouble, but soon, her shrill voice rose higher and higher in volume, and Gavin literally sank back into the table as he closed his eyes.

His mother had only spoken to him like this once in his life, and that time had been when he missed his sister’s engagement party only because he thought her fiancé was a douchebag.

“YOU DIDN’T THINK I WOULD FIND OUT, DID YOU?! OHOHO! YOU THOUGHT YOUR MOTHER WAS BEYOND STUPID JUST BECAUSE I JUST RECENTLY GOT USED TO THESE SMARTPHONES, HUH???”

He facepalmed, “Hey ma.”

This made his mother explode. “DON’T YOU ‘HEY MA’ ME!!” she shrieked horribly, “HOW COME I’M ONE OF THE LAST PEOPLE WHO FOUND OUT YOU ARE GAY, GAVIN?!?! HUH?!? I’M YOUR _MOTHER_ , YOUR OWN DAMN MOTHER, AND I WAS THE LAST PERSON TO KNOW! EVEN YOUR FATHER KNEW, AND HE WAS TRYING TO HIDE THE NEWS ARTICLES FROM ME!!! YOU UNGRATEFUL WRETCH!!!!!!!!”

Gavin heard acerbic snickering, and he glared up at Nines, finding the tall android leaning over another row of tables as he sneered down at the phone he held in his hands while his mother raved on.

“WHY DIDN’T ANYONE TELL ME YOU GOT MARRIED, HUH?!?! WHY??? I’M YOUR MOTHER! I OUGHT TO KNOW!!”

Gavin rubbed his forehead; positive a headache was coming. “Mom, please,” he begged, “it was kind of an unexpected last-minute thing…I swear!!”

She kept going, however. “IT’S BAD ENOUGH THAT YOU’RE CHOOSING TO HAVE NO RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR SISTER! IT’S OKAY IF YOU WANT TO CUT HER OUT OF YOUR LIFE, GAVIN, BUT HOW COULD YOU NOT EVEN TELL YOUR OWN PARENTS THAT YOU WERE GETTING MARRIED?!?!?”

“Mom, please, calm down,” he urged gently, “I’m sure I can explain it—”

“I DON’T NEED YOUR EXPLANATIONS!!! YOUR HUSBAND JUST TALKED TO ME ON THE PHONE, AND EVEN THOUGH HE SOUNDS LIKE A NICE, KIND, REFINED GENTLEMAN, YOU’RE STILL A DISGRACE TO ME, GAVIN REED!!!! HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO YOUR OWN MOTHER?!?!? I WANTED GRANDBABIES, GAVIN! GRANDBABIES!!!!!! HOW COULD YOU DENY ME THIS RIGHT??!!? HUH?!?!”

Gavin tried hitting the ‘video call’ button so his mother could see him at least, but the moment it connected, she cut it off.

“I CAN’T EVEN LOOK AT YOU RIGHT NOW, GAVIN! I CAN’T!!”

“Mom, please,” he begged as he tried to connect again, but she refused, and Gavin heard a deep-but gentle-voice in the background, and he recognized it as his father’s voice.

He let out a sigh of relief, “Please, can I at least have a video call with dad? Maybe he can see my h-husband…” he looked at Nines, and was only met with a head tilt, and a look of indifference.

There was shuffling, and then his mother gave out a weary sigh, plopping down somewhere before the call connected to video format, and the entire screen of the phone soon revealed the interior of Gavin’s parents’ home.

It was just as he last remembered it; neat, cozy, homey, and tidy. His mother was sprawled on the couch, head her lap as she shook it back and forth while muttering something. Her long black hair curtained her face away from his view, but then his father stood before him, shielding his mother out of the way.

Gavin’s father had aged considerably since the last time Gavin had seen him. His hair had grown whiter, shorter-due to falling and thinning out-and his face held many more wrinkles. Still, in spite of all of that, his face remained calm, gentle, kind, and loving. His blue-grey eyes smiled at Gavin, and he steadied the phone as he spoke out, “Hello, son.”

Gavin’s father had a very contagious smile, and it immediately affected his son in positive ways. He smiled back, “Hey dad, how’re you?”

His father looked over at Gavin’s mother and sighed, “Things could obviously be better Gavin, who am I to lie to you?”

Gavin held out a hand, “Dad, if you’ll just take a second to meet Nines-just on here-I’m sure you’ll be able to see that it’s not so bad.”

“Son,” his father interrupted as Nines stood to his full height, as if getting ready to step in the view at any moment he was needed.

Gavin’s father carried on kindly and patiently, every word bearing warmth and acceptance. “I just wanted you to know that I’m not mad at you, and I’m not disappointed…” he looked down warily, “…truth be told, I’m just disappointed that you felt you couldn’t trust me enough to at least let me know you preferred men.”

Gavin’s jaw fell, “You…you knew?!? You _knew_???”

His mother looked up in the background, too.

“Of course I did,” his father whispered, “I don’t have an issue with it, son, and neither does your mother.”

“Yes I do, Harris! Don’t you lie to him!!”

He roared back at her, “You hush, now! You know he’s our boy no matter what, and that’s the anger in you that’s just talking, crazy woman!!”

Gavin’s mother closed her mouth as she just got off the couch and stormed somewhere off-camera. A door slammed in the distance, then.

Gavin smiled at his father, and his father chuckled warmly. “Don’t take offense to her, son,” he stated warmly, “she’ll come around eventually.”

Feeling his heart burning with both pain and overwhelming emotions, Gavin pushed out softly and meaningfully, “I love you, dad.”

His father nodded at him, “I love you too, son, no matter what, you hear?”

“I know, dad.”

Before things got awkward, Gavin heard his father sniffling, and he wiped his eyes as he cleared his throat. “Oh! But your mother and I will definitely need to drive on down to see you and your new…partner…how’s about next weekend?”

Gavin gasped, and he looked over at Nines, who merely shrugged.

“They’re your family, Detective,” he stated obviously, “I can’t stop them from visiting you.”

Gavin beamed at his father excitedly, “He says it’s okay!”

His father nodded, “Alright son, we’ll call you when we’re about to leave, just so you know when to expect us…” he saw Gavin shifting, and he cleared his throat, “oh, and Gavin!”

Gavin froze once again, “Yes?”

“We’re gonna need to have a _loooooong_ chat son, just the two of us.”

Biting his lower lip nervously, Gavin only sighed as he nodded. “I know. I’ll talk to you later, dad; I’ve gotta work a bit more.”

“Till next time, son.”

The call ended, and Gavin’s father disappeared from the screen. Gavin ran his fingers down along the screen, as if almost wanting to reach out and just touch his father’s face as he used to do in the past in a move of comfort whenever he really needed it. He only felt the cold screen against his fingertips, now, and he sighed as he set the phone down on his lap and looked at Nines shyly.

“I’m sorry about that,” he almost whispered, “she means well, you know, but I guess she—”

“Spare me the maudlin notions, Detective,” Nines snapped with more venom and spite than necessary, “I’d like to get back to my own work now, if it’s all the same to you.”

Frowning at him, Gavin waved his rudeness off, “You were the one who barged in here; not me!”

“That raving woman interrupted not only _my_ work, but also Captain Fowler’s!!”

Gavin stood up angrily, “That ‘raving woman’ is my _mother,_ and her name is Stacey Louise Reed!!”

“I don’t particularly care one way or another, Detective Reed,” Nines cut in sharply, “all I know is that Captain Fowler called me, and he was furious that some woman had tried calling not only _your_ extension, but then she’d called his personal line when you weren’t responding. She screamed not only at him, but also at _me_ , I’ll have you know.”

Gavin smirked, “Yep, that’s my mom, alright.”

Nines sneered cruelly in response, “Indeed. Glad to see the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.”

He turned to exit the room, but then reached out for the cellphone resting by Gavin’s legs. He grunted, “I think I’ll have that back, now.”

Gavin rolled his eyes, but gave it to him, and his stomach grumbled again.

“It’s lunchtime, right?”

Nines growled tastelessly, “It is.”

“What can I eat??” Gavin didn’t understand why he’d asked Nines this, and he nearly slapped himself in the face for it. He’d done the shopping; he should’ve known the answer to that!! So why had he asked Nines?!?

Nines appeared to have been thinking the same, and his brown eyebrows rose to his hairline, almost. “What a stupid question, Detective Reed,” he barked out angrily, “you were the one who stocked up the fridge last time, no?” he wasn’t waiting for an answer, “then you should be the one who prepares his own meals!!”

Gavin nodded quickly, “Yes, but I’m thinkin’ of goin’ on a low-carb diet, Nines,” he pet his stomach, “and I figured since your lifestyle is so dandy, maybe you know of a recipe or two that relies much more on vegetables and protein?”

Nines rolled his eyes as he swept around towards the door, “You can have whatever you find crawling about on the floor for all I care; just let me get back to my work!!”

Gavin merely scratched the scar on his nose, but followed Nines out of the room, making sure to turn off the lights after himself as the door clicked shut so softly that they both couldn’t hear it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Very interesting behavior from Nines!!  
> Gavin's parents will show up soon, but they're honestly a lot more loving than you think (especially his dad)


	21. Shockingly Unaware

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The chapter that should be known as 'GAVIN WTF ARE YOU DOING'

It was almost half-past 4 p.m. when Gavin’s phone went off, and thankfully, he was in his bedroom, selecting outfits he could potentially wear. He dove for the bed, knowing it was Raoul even before he loaded the Facebook messenger app.

As if on cue, Shelley poked her head in the room, and she flew in as Gavin was reading Raoul’s message.

**Raoul: hey, we still on for tonight?**

**Gavin R: yep, u bet!**

**Raoul: great! cant wait 2 c u!!**

**Gavin R: me 2**

Shelley made a strange noise that much resembled a growl, as if she’d secretly hacked Gavin’s phone and had read his reply to Raoul. She’d been a lot more ‘alert’ and sensitive to anything Gavin did on his phone as of late, and the detective had worked hard on keeping his phone away and hidden in odd places just so she wouldn’t pay attention to it. But it’d turned out to be a difficult task when Shelley literally began following Gavin everywhere all weekend, as if keeping her eye on him at all times. The detective hardly got time to himself; any room he would wander in, Shelley would often float behind him like a shadow, her eye light orange as she cautiously studied him until he’d had some time to sneak away into his own room.

Now, as the little Nano-Bot hovered impatiently around Gavin’s legs like a shark circling its prey, it did nothing for Gavin’s nerves. If anything, it made him feel as if he’d been plotting something horrible. He didn’t like it at all.

Gavin lowered the phone as he glared down at her. “Whaaaat?!?” he whined, “I’m not doin’ anything!!” He knew he sounded so petulant, but he didn’t care; he just wanted her to stop glowering at him so angrily.

Before she could utter another machine-like protest, Gavin held up two clothes hangers. In his left hand, a lovely black suit and a white tie dangled from the hanger, and on the right-hand clothes hanger, was a simple cream sweater with black dress pants and soft-black loafers he’d laid out at the foot of the bed.

“Which one do you think is the best, Shelley?” he held the hangers down a little lower, and she merely flew around the outfit on the right.

Gavin smiled at her, and then at the clothes. “We have the exact same style, girl,” he giggled as he placed the fancy suit back in his closet. “Glad we think alike, Shelley!!”

Beeeeeeep!!! “Error. Error. Unable. To. Recognize. Statements. Error. Unable. To. Process!!” Boooop!!!!

Gavin felt bad for her, then. He knew that as of late, he’d been talking to her as he used to talk to his older sister when they were growing up, and while a human being could handle the social intimacy and closeness, he knew it was harder for machines. The little Nano-Bot seemed horribly confused, as a huge overload of error messages seemed to spin in her round head like a storm brewing. She flew a few feet back and lowered herself to the floor, settling on her front and hind leg as she let out low ‘boooops’ repeatedly.

_“I should really ask Nines how to ‘update’ her…or something like that! I can’t just leave her like this! She’s not understanding me, and she’s suffering!!”_

After he’d made that little mental note to himself, Gavin gently grabbed Shelley, and he placed her on top of one of the fluffiest pillows on his bed. “Rest here, sweetie,” he cooed down at her while he hurriedly put on his deodorant and hair softener products. He couldn’t believe that time was literally slipping out of his fingers; it was nearly 5 already!!

He popped a minty tic tac in his mouth, checked his appearance in his mirror, and then silently made his way out of his room, closing the door only half-way behind him as he turned off the lights. Shelley’s little blue light flickered at him from on top of his pillow, and he waved ‘goodbye’ to her as he whispered, “I’ll be back soon, gorgeous! Don’t you worry!!”

Beeeeeeooooppp! “Error. Error. Unable. To. Process. Error!”

He looked down in pain and sadness, “I know, girl, I know.”

Something had to be done to help Shelley, and Gavin was already forming plans.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

 _“Jesus Christ, it really took forever for me to get ready!”_ Gavin placed his loafers down on the main floor as he tiptoed around, checking one last time if he had his phone with him, enough cash to buy his own drinks, and just in case, he even had a stun gun with him…

Gavin glared at it for a moment, holding the dangerous object in his hands as he frowned.

 _“The hell am I thinkin’?? It’s just Raoul!! I don’t need this!!”_ Being prepared for anything was always a good practice, but how was he to make a new friend by already doubting him? No, the weapon would have to go, and trust was required. Deciding to toss it into a black knapsack he’d brought with him and hung in the hallway closet, Gavin shut its door softly, trying not to make too much noise as Nines worked away in his office just beyond the hall and through the kitchen.

Once again, Gavin really had to stand by and wonder just what the hell he was doing. It was already quarter past five, and he was lingering in the halls of Nines’ home, about to call for a taxi once Raoul decided to let him know which bar downtown he was at.

Great.

This seemed like such a stupid, awkward idea, but Gavin was unable to stop himself from reaching into his dress pants pockets, and he withdrew his phone. It immediately buzzed and vibrated, and Gavin fumbled for it, cursing himself for not having the decency to turn off the volume.

The Facebook notifications screamed at him in the darkness of the hall, and as Gavin’s sweaty hands fought to go up to adjust the volume and mute the phone, the lights in the hallway turned on suddenly.

Gavin froze in fear at once.

Nines stood before him, leaning casually against one of the walls, his head right underneath a golden colored picture frame which held the hand-drawn portrait of a Siberian Tiger. Nines didn’t look impressed, and he studied Gavin’s form of dress carefully for a moment before he whispered softly, “Headed out?”

Gavin fumbled for his words, “Umm…yeah I’m just…j-just visiting Connor and Anderson…is there a problem with that?”

It wasn’t the smoothest lie he could’ve come up with, but it kind of fit…Hank and Connor lived right next door to each other, now, and they had both previously told Gavin he was free to drop by any time he wanted…Gavin only hoped Nines would buy the lie, and he smiled confidently-though he tried making it seem friendly, too.

Nines merely quirked a serious brow. “Indeed, and I take it that I’d be in the way of your exuberant conversations with them?”

Gavin was suddenly on the alert. He knew for a fact that Nines was going to be contacting Connor telepathically in their weird android way to likely check if this was all true, and he hadn’t bothered to ask Connor to cover for him. He was sooooooooo screwed! But he couldn’t just ask Nines to come along! What if Nines actually agreed to it?!? How would he meet up with Raoul, then?!?!

As Gavin stood in pause, Nines’ LED light turned yellow. “What’s wrong, Detective?” he smiled coldly, “you shouldn’t keep Connor and Lieutenant Anderson waiting; it’s very rude, you know.” He turned around, practically hovering and levitating off the floor due to how quietly he walked back into his office, and shut the door without even peering back at Gavin.

Gavin let out a long sigh of relief, but he didn’t spare even a moment; he had to let Connor know that he needed back-up, and not the police kind!!!

He stepped out the front door, moving along until he was beneath the garage door lights, and then he called Connor. The RK800 answered the incoming call promptly, as he often would do.

“Gavin!! Hey!! How are you??” While Connor’s voice was warm and pleasant to listen to, it did nothing to soothe tension in Gavin’s nerves. A few cars drove by, but they were residents who lived on Bishop Street, and they each pulled into the driveways of their homes as tired neighbors on the street went inside their large, fancy houses for the night.

“Connor,” Gavin breathed lowly, “I need you to do me a favor, buddy…”

Connor gasped, “Oh shoot! Hang on, Gavin, Nines is trying to reach me!”

His heart leapt a mile in his chest at once. “CONNOR!!!!!” he hadn’t meant to raise his voice, and he looked around the neighborhood, and then over at the closed front door of the mansion. Luckily, all the lights were off inside, and Nines was more than likely still inside his office working…err…trying to get a hold of Connor, it seemed.

“Gavin? Are you okay??” Connor’s concerned voice brought him back to the situation at hand, and Gavin forced himself to breathe and smile, even though Connor couldn’t see it. It was often a technique he’d used to help himself calm down, and he smiled on as he answered Connor.

“Uhh yeah! I’m okay Connor, I just needed to get some air, and I told Nines I was gonna be seein’ you and Hank…” his voice trailed off at the end there, and he winced, closing his eyes as he awaited Connor’s screams.

They never came.

Gavin stared at his phone, wondering if the call had disconnected, but then Connor giggled, “It’s okay, Gavin, I think I get it!!”

“Y-you do?”

“Sure!” he happily cried out, “you just need some ‘me’ time, and that’s okay!!” he hummed, his tone growing a little stern, “but next time, you should tell your husband that.”

Gavin groused, “For God’s sakes, he’s not—”

“I’ll tell him you’re with me for now, but try not to lie to Nines anymore, Gavin,” Connor warned softly, “it’s really not nice, you know.”

“What the—”

“Gotta answer Nines now, Gavin, byyeeee!” Without another thought or word, Connor disconnected the call.

Gavin was left wondering what the hell had happened, but at least his heart and nerves were a lot calmer now that he knew Connor was going to be an alibi for him regarding his whereabouts. At least he had that sorted, but now, he had to call up a taxi as he read out Raoul’s message.

**Raoul: let’s meet up at Rabid Hound downtown**

{---@```---@```---}

 

It was already ten-to 6, now, and Gavin wasn’t thinking anything. His mind was one blank slate, as if someone had erased all thoughts. He relied heavily on his legs to get running the moment the city cab stopped on the side of the street closest to the Rabid Hound, and Gavin leapt out of the car after quickly paying his fare.

The bar was quite busy, thankfully, and the lights were very brightly shining and beaming in the setting evening sky. People chatted merrily inside, and Gavin could practically taste the beer enticing and seducing him already…it really had been so long since he’d had a cold beer, and his mouth began salivating as his mind conjured up images of fresh bottles of alcohol he could taste all night. He didn’t need to be encouraged more, and Gavin headed inside when a couple shoved their way out the doors past him, giggling and laughing into the evening sky happily and jovially.

Gavin fought through the sea of bodies as he began searching for Raoul, when he saw a long hand jut out from above everyone else’s heads. The hand beckoned him over, and he knew it was Raoul as he waved the limb around like a flag blowing in the wind.

“Yo!! Reed! Over here!!”

Recognizing Raoul’s baritone voice, Gavin looked up, and really stretched his neck up to see the top of Raoul’s dirty-blonde-colored hair. He shoved a few people out of the way a bit rudely, but he didn’t care; Raoul was waiting for him by a few sofas not too far away from a large pool table in the center of the bar.

Raoul was already all set; he had a drink of his own, and he was wearing a black leather jacket, a white t-shirt underneath it, dark jeans, and black biker boots.

Gavin’s heart skipped a few beats, and then he felt himself blushing-angry that he had overdressed, when Raoul was just wearing casual clothing that he no doubt was comfortable in, but also looked amazing in.

Damn!!

He dragged his feet until he sat himself down in the black sofa beside Raoul, and he shook his hand quickly.

“Glad you could make it,” Raoul stated, pushing up his black sunglasses and letting them sit atop his head.

The music in the bar was loud, obnoxious, and country music. It was the only music Gavin couldn’t stand, and he was pretty sure it was a song by Brad Paisley…he shivered as he tried drowning it out.

He looked for a moment at Raoul, and he nearly blushed again. Unlike himself, Raoul had chosen to keep a five-o’clock shadow, and he looked really good in it. His skin was clean, and he smelled like mint, and something spicy and hot. Whatever it was, Gavin didn’t need to be smelling it, as every intake of breath seemed to do something odd to his thoughts and body slowly.

He readjusted his wedding ring, pushing it higher up on his finger, as if he was afraid it was going to somehow fall off. He motioned for a bartender with short, spiky blonde hair to come over, and she happily practically cat-walked over to them.

“What can I do for you fine gentlemen?” she asked while blinking flirtatiously at them.

Gavin smiled politely, “I’ll have a uh…” he peeked over at the cold beer Raoul was drinking for a guide, “…yeah I’ll have a Heineken, please-no ice, though!!”

She winked, “You got it, sugar!!”

Raoul snickered once she was off, “You could’ve just asked me, Reed; I would have bought it for you.”

Gavin shrugged his offer away as he blushed, “Oh please,” he snorted, “you’re only doing that because I’m dressed like someone’s grandfather who just recently got out of Church!”

Raoul threw his head back and laughed, “Nah! You look good!” he laughed a little louder when Gavin waved him off, “I’m serious,” he leaned in close to Gavin, “at least, you look better than the guy who came in here minutes before you found me…”

Gavin raised an inquisitive brow, “What guy?”

Raoul whistled as his eyes widened dramatically, “Awww man,” he leaned back in his seat, “right before you showed up, there was this big guy who came in here, and I guess he was meeting up with someone else…like a date or something…” he snickered impishly as he took a swig from his bottle, “anyway, he waddles up to me, and he’s biiiiiiiiiig, Reed, like seriously huuuuuuge!”

Gavin threw his head back and laughed, and a second later, the bartender came back with his drink. “Here we are!” she winked again at him before she skipped away, her long, red boots flashing in the lights.

Raoul continued, “Anyway, he waddles up to me, says hi, and then immediately starts flirting with me!!!”

Gavin gasped, “Noooo, why???” he lowered his voice a little, “I mean…did he think you were g-gay?”

Raoul shrugged, “I have no idea, but he sat right beside me where you are sitting now, and tried to make himself all sweet for me, and the entire time I just kept thinking: ‘please god…please help me’…”

Gavin laughed again, his stomach and sides aching a little as he imagined an overweight man hitting on a man as heterosexual as Raoul Spencer. It was just too priceless to even imagine, and it made him seriously bend over in laughter as he pictured it all happening while Raoul went on with his story, even though he was being a bit more superfluous than Gavin would’ve liked.

“I guess he thought I was into him or something,” he took off his sunglasses and folded them into a pocket on his t-shirt, “but I swear I was just being friendly. After a few moments, you could just tell that he was so sexually…charged…” he shivered as he held his beer to his chest.

Gavin felt a little uneasy by this, as he wasn’t sure if it was a sign that Raoul was throwing his way. Was he saying that he found homosexual men disgusting? Or did he not want to be hit on by a certain type and build of male? It was impossible to tell, but then Raoul threw Gavin a charming smile that melted away Gavin’s trepidation.

“I mean, this guy was just biiiig,” Raoul held out his hands for the desired effect, “and it’s okay to be big, but it’s not my thing, you know?”

_“Wait…are you suggesting that you like men, but not overweight men? Or are you suggesting that you don’t like men in general? I’m so confused about you!!!!”_

_……………….._

_“Why the fuck do I care?!?!? I’m MARRIED!!!!!!”_

Wanting to get away from his erratic thoughts, Gavin asked, “Was he hitting on you a lot?”

“Yeah totally!” Raoul sighed in disdain, “like, it was over-the-top pathetic!”

Gavin giggled as he imagined it all happening, “My goodness, so he was just trying to hook up with you the entire time??”

Raoul tsked, “Not like in the way you think, but yeah there was a lot of innuendo about cucumbers and bananas, and you could just tell this dude was sexually charged from the energy he gave off around me!!”

Gavin chuckled again, “That’s brutal!!”

“It doesn’t end there,” Raoul whispered when the music switched to more country, “he said he wanted to see me, but I told him I was waiting on my boyfriend to come back from ordering drinks, and then a second later, you walked in and I called your name!”

Gavin felt all the blood freezing in his veins.

_“Boyfriend??? The hell?!?!”_

Why was he panicking?? Sure, Raoul had lied to get away from someone creepy and distasteful, but why had he used him as a his ‘boyfriend’ placement? Surely he could’ve asked someone else?? Why him?? Especially when he knew he was ‘married’…

Shaking his head, Gavin finally took a drink. His beer felt cool enough on his lips that it was refreshing as he washed it down his throat. All his senses and nerves tingled as he took another swig, and he leaned back a little, allowing himself to finally get comfortable and immersed in the environment and scene around them.

Many patrons in the bar danced, talked, and joked around as they played ping-pong, pool, and other video games off at the sides. Others sat about in booths and seats, just chatting and trying to be quiet as they enjoyed the music and their drinks. Gavin felt himself relaxing, but when he looked over at Raoul, he found that the other man was giving him a rather strange look. It was the look of someone who wanted something delectable to taste, and it was a somewhat sexually lewd look. While it threw him completely off about Raoul, Gavin tried not focusing on meeting Raoul’s eyes. The last thing he wanted to do was send out the wrong signals, and there was still no way on earth he was going to ask about Raoul’s prior sexual escapades, for that matter.

Gavin turned his eyes towards his beer, wondering if he had gone so long without a drink that he was already inebriated and simply imagining things. He hoped it had been his imagination, but just in case it wasn’t, he tried smiling widely as he covered for his awkwardness.

“Wanna hear about my worst dating experience?”

Raoul grinned as he held his beer to his chest, “Hell yeah, if you think you can beat mine, that is, haha!”

Gavin nodded, “Bet is on!” he took another sip and then began explaining. “When I was still in college, my dad got me a new iPhone, and it was my first-ever iPhone. I was still kinda confused about my sexuality, and I downloaded this stupid app—”

“It was Grindr, wasn’t it?” Raoul interrupted, and Gavin had to laugh as he looked down at his hands.

“Yeah…yeah it was.”

Raoul snickered and slapped him gently on the back, “S’all good, man!”

Smiling at the beer bottle in his hands, Gavin continued. “Anyway, so I was messaging this guy who was a year younger than me and apparently went to the same University you did, ironically, and after a few weeks of just textin’, we decided to meet up in a mall…” he laughed as he wiped his lips after he took another drink, “and when I met this guy…okay!” he held up a finger, “first of all, I felt like I was catfished, because his display photo was sooooo much more different than what he looked like in reality.”

Raoul smiled, “Not half as attractive in the flesh?”

“Not. Even. Close,” Gavin sighed in exasperation, “but I was willin’ to ignore that, if only his personality hadn’t been so…so draining!!”

“What do you mean?”

“Like…the second we sat down on a bench and started talking, this guy was just _sooooooo_ depressed!! He told me about his parents dying, and how he became an orphan, and I was trying to support him and be kind to him and all that, but within an hour of meeting him, he just drained all my emotional energy!!” he took a small sip, “it was horrible!”

“Wow, haha,” Raoul shook his head, his eyebrows rising dramatically as he took a sip of his drink.

Gavin pointed at himself, “And I thought I was depressing! But Jesus! There was just _noooo_ life left in this young dude!!” Gavin pushed his hair back as he snickered, “I was supportive, but the things he told me just drained me, and I seriously never wanted to see him again!”

Raoul clapped as he laughed joyfully, “Holy shit, who the hell just airs out information like that to their date???”

“That guy did, apparently!” Gavin snorted, “needless to say, we never saw each other again, and that was the end of dating for me, thank god!!”

He missed the confused look upon Raoul’s face. “But you’re married now,” he pointed out as he looked down at Gavin’s ring.

“Hmm?”

“You’re _married_ , Reed,” Raoul snickered, “can’t say I could’ve pictured that.” He sat back and draped a hand over the back of the small sofa seat, smiling warmly at Gavin as his eyes lingered a little too long on his mouth.

Gavin covered it with his hand as he shrugged, “You were married too, Spencer.”

“Aaaand I regret it almost every damn day,” Raoul admitted, looking down at his almost-empty beer bottle, “the married life’s not what it’s cracked up to be, I can safely tell you that one.”

_“You don’t have to tell me; I know already from personal experience.”_

Trying not to think about Nines so his night wouldn’t be spoiled, Gavin smiled again with pink cheeks at Raoul, “Don’t worry though,” he assured gently, “at least you got a pretty good-looking boy from your marriage, right?”

Raoul raised his beer bottle in a small toast, “Yep! Gotta say he gets his looks from me, though!”

Gavin chose not to comment on that, and as he stared over at a bunch of men playing poker behind Raoul, his eyes caught sight of the other male’s eyes wandering over his body a little…licentiously. Gavin once again wondered how much he really had to drink, but when he shook his beer bottle, he realized it was still over half-way full. There was no way he was drunk; Raoul was checking him out…but why?

He cleared his throat as he forced himself to look back over at Raoul. “So…uh…so…”

Gavin was beyond mortified. He didn’t understand what was going on-whether it was the alcohol, his nerves, the fact that he hadn’t been out to a bar in a long, long time-but whatever it was, he felt as if his tongue was petrified, and he was unable to form a coherent thought or phrase.

Raoul didn’t seem to mind it, however, and his eyes swept and up and down Gavin’s body slowly, as if he never wanted to stop staring at him. It began making Gavin feel uncomfortable, and he turned to the side as he crossed a leg over the other.

He cleared his throat, “I umm…I think I’m almost done here…”

Raoul smirked, “Can I get you another beer, maybe?”

Gavin shook his head as he scratched the back of his neck, “Nah, I should get goin’ soon, actually.”

“Oooooh,” Raoul quipped playfully, “is your hubby gonna get mad at you or something?”

_“He doesn’t even know I’m here with you!”_

“Ah…not exactly,” Gavin responded calmly, swishing the alcoholic contents around in the beer bottle as he played with it, “he just can be a little…” he stopped, looking at Raoul suddenly. The other man was frowning a little, but he seemed too eager to hear what Gavin was going to say. Raoul was leaning forward a little, and he placed a hand beneath his chin as he stroked the skin there, eyes intently gazing into Gavin’s. The other male couldn’t help but lean in closer as well.

“…look, my husband can just be a little closed-minded when it comes to certain things, that’s all!” Perhaps if it had been simplified like this, there wouldn’t be as big of a need to explain more? He duly hoped not…

Raoul threw him a little knowing smirk, “Married your polar opposite, huh?”

Gavin’s jaw fell open, “Huh?! How could you possibly know that—”

“I went through it, Reed,” Raoul grumbled, finally dropping his hands to rest on his lap as he looked around the crowded, rowdy bar. It appeared he was just looking around, and he finished, turning his head over as he offered Gavin a little half-smile that seemed slightly pained.

“Believe me,” he started softly, “it’s not easy to know what you want when you’re younger,” he pointed at himself, then, “learn from my mistakes; don’t go around thinking that you need to marry anyone you stick your di—”

“More beer, gentlemen?”

Gavin nearly leapt up in fright when the same long-legged, short-haired bartender stood before them. She was now wearing a cowboy hat, and she winked playfully at Gavin. He merely shook his head.

“No thank you, ma’am.”

“Let me know if you change your mind!!” She seemed slightly miffed by the rejection, but she sauntered off anyway, her hips swaying seductively and invitingly.

Gavin shivered as he turned away from her and stared at the floor.

“She’s into you,” Raoul announced, and it made Gavin shiver again.

“No thanks,” he spat with disgust, “she’s got the wrong equipment, if you know what I mean.”

Something dark twinkled in the center of Raoul’s eyes, and he huffed-though not in an unfriendly or judgmental way. He merely leaned over as he draped a hand over the back of Gavin’s seat.

“You sure you’re not going through a confusing time or something, Reed?” Raoul inquired as he threw a small grin at Gavin that almost teetered on the edge of over-confidence. “It could just be a phase, you know…” his breath tickled Gavin’s cheeks, and when the detective looked over, Raoul was barely a few inches away from his face!!

Freaking out immediately, Gavin grabbed his beer bottle, and he tore himself off the seat, running through the dancing groups of drunken patrons. He never stopped running, not even when he had already exited the bar, and nearly crashed into someone else trying to come in. His beer bottle was smacked out of his hands, however, and it broke into a hundred tiny pieces as it shattered on the hard, concrete pavement.

As the shiny glass shards stared back up at him in the dark, Gavin was still able to see his own shocked expression glaring back at him one hundred times. It still wasn’t enough…

Running faster, he eventually flagged down a city cab, and he hurried back to Nines’ home without another thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ........ I reiterate my previous statement...  
> GAVIN WTF ARE YOU DOING!!!!!!!!!!!! 😒😒😒😫😫😫🤧😠😡


	22. A Curtain of Wrath

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This piece is AMAZING, guys. I am serious. Give it a listen, to, and legit, the back story of it isn't something I made up, but the composer himself had a dream about it, and composed it out of rage and longing to finally learn this wonderful, hauntingly beautiful piece the Devil played for him.  
> Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7rxl5KsPjs

The weekend was going by too slowly, now, and for once in his entire life, Gavin Reed wished it would hurry up and finish. All of Saturday night after he’d bolted from the bar, the minute Gavin had hurried in through the front door of the mansion-which was still unlocked as he’d left it-his phone had been assaulted by plenty of messages from Raoul.

Gavin had at least made an attempt to ignore the messages, and he’d been doing relatively well, considering how he had very little to do. Shelley provided enough of a distraction for him in the night, as she had grown accustomed to ‘sleeping’ in Gavin’s room lately. Sometimes, she would lie on a pillow next to him, and other times, she would end up at the foot of the bed, next to Gavin’s feet. He was worried about her and still didn’t want to approach Nines for help, but Gavin spent as much time talking to her as he could until sleep took over his body and mind.

Perhaps when he woke up, the messages from Raoul would cease, and the others would just disappear in the night like a bad dream…then again, reality disappointed him when he woke up Sunday morning around quarter to six.

The persistent man just wouldn’t stop messaging, and majority of his messages were about Gavin running off on Saturday night.

**Raoul: im sorry for scaring you…i didnt mean it, Reed, pls talk to me?**

**Raoul: hello? u there?**

**Raoul: Reed, i just wanna know if you made it home safely, pls message me**

**Raoul: guess ur mad at me? Im sorry…i wasnt trying to be creepy**

**Raoul: i also wasnt hitting on you! i swear on everything!**

**Raoul: plz be ok…so worried…**

**Raoul: hello?!!!!!!!!?!!?!?**

**Raoul: GAVIN!??!?!?!? CALL ME!!!!!!!!!!!**

Gavin groaned as he turned his phone off, knowing that the stupid Facebook messenger app was going to alert Raoul to the fact that he had indeed checked and read his messages sooner or later.

_“Stupid Facebook and their ‘pro-stalker’ features!!”_

That was the least of his worries, however; he’d forgotten to even pay for his drink, and he was worried about the police coming after him for it…the irony. It wasn’t just law enforcement Gavin feared; if they showed up, it would mean that Nines would soon learn he wasn’t with Connor or Hank!!!

_“Why was I such a fool?!? Why didn’t I think and plan this better?!?! UGGHH!!”_

But perhaps it was because he wasn’t used to doing this…at all…like, never! Going over it all, Gavin realized that he’d _never_ been unfaithful in a relationship…not that he had many at all, actually. At least, nothing serous…but still! He was always a loyal, honest, decent, trustworthy partner!! So what had changed last night?

True, he despised Nines a great deal, and he thought he was nothing more than the self-righteous smug prick he was ‘married’ to, but still, Nines didn’t deserve to be lied to, nor did he deserve his ‘husband’ running off to hang out with another attractive guy…

The fuckery of it all was getting to him, and Gavin hid in the shower for at least an hour after he woke up before Nines banged on the door and told him to get out, else he would shut off all the hot water in the entire mansion. That threat worked like a charm, and Gavin climbed out of the shower, hurriedly drying himself off as he dressed in blue slacks, black flip flops, and a black and red t-shirt. Although he had clean clothes on and felt physically clean, something inside him still itched and burned, and he truly felt ‘sullied’ inside, even though nothing had really happened…he really needed to get his mind off this.

He searched through the kitchen for something to eat for breakfast, but his appetite died the moment he saw Nines sitting down by the kitchen table. Nines looked like a big jungle cat; he was wearing a black and white pinstripe three-piece suit that looked perfectly new, and black loafers. Gavin eyed his getup wearily but grabbed an egg as he searched for a small pan on the pot and pan rack.

“Good morning, zebra,” he spat out sarcastically at Nines when he fished out a pan small enough for his egg. He cracked the eggshell open on the side of the pan and poured the yolk and everything else that was delicious and healthy inside it once the stove was on.

Turning on music emanating from within his office, Nines called out to Gavin, “Did you have a good time with Connor and Hank?” Strangely, Nines sounded somewhat… ‘chipper’…

Nines’ question nearly made Gavin faint. He remembered his lie-of course-but had Nines truly found out about his _real_ whereabouts the other night? Surely not…oh dear god, he hoped not…

Gavin played it cool, shrugging as he yawned, “Yep, they’re both good, thanks for asking, by the way.”

“I’m pleased to hear things were copacetic,” Nines huffed, “now, hurry up with your meal, Detective,” he then stood tall as he brushed his suit clean, “we have a lot of work to do today.”

Gavin groaned, “It’s a Sunday, Nines!!”

Nines apparently didn’t care one way or another. “I know, my husband,” he said icily, already heading for the dining room, eager to go down to the tunnels beneath the mansion.

“The day’s work won’t wait, Detective,” he called out to Gavin as his egg cooked, “hurry up!”

Perhaps it was the music, but Gavin found it to be an odd choice, and it made him freeze and forget about all his worries, and everything he had been occupied with doing. The music was obviously classical, but it seemed to be very erratic. It was all over the place, and it sent out an unsettling, haunting tune before a violinist played on. His music took flight, and Gavin swayed as he felt millions of emotions pouring through him at once. Music had never turned him into frozen jelly in this way before, but he loved it…

 _“What is this piece??? I must know…”_ It reeled him in, and he felt dizzy as he stared at Nines.

“Nines,” he breathed out with some effort, “what is this piece??”

Nines turned around slowly, and his eyes suddenly were full of emotions. “Violin Sonata in G minor, by Giuseppe Tartini.” When Nines saw he had Gavin’s attention as the violin made all hairs on Gavin’s body stand, Nines paced his way back over to Gavin and grinned. “I can see that is has an effect on you,” he pointed out factually, “this piece is also known as ‘The Devil’s Trill Sonata’, Detective Reed…” his eyes swept over Gavin’s flushed face, and his grin grew wider. “Would you care to know why it is called ‘The Devil’s Trill Sonata’?”

Gavin panted, as if he had been drowning. The more the music swept around him, though, the more he felt that way. It struck right through his bones and organs, and he felt petrified on the spot while Nines turned around him in a circle. The circles grew smaller however, and as Nines wove his way around Gavin, he leaned into him closer and closer.

“It is said that Tartini allegedly told the French astronomer Jérôme Lalande that he had dreamed that the devil had appeared to him in his dreams, and had asked to be Tartini’s servant and teacher…” Nines’ breath hit Gavin’s throat, causing the shorter man to seize up as small bolts of pleasure floated through him.

“At the end of the music lesson, Tartini handed the devil his violin to test his skill, which the devil began to play with virtuosity; delivering an intense and magnificent performance. So singularly beautiful and executed with such superior taste and precision, that the composer felt his breath taken away…” Nines scoffed, “…much like you are feeling right now, Detective…” there was a slight purr to his deep, velvety tone, and Gavin felt his head growing heavy, and his body tingled with something close to yearning…

Continuing, Nines reached out with a hand, and a few of his fingers very softly ghosted along the shell of Gavin’s right ear. “Mesmerized by the devil’s brilliant and awe-inspiring playing, Tartini attempted to recreate what he had heard. However, despite having said that the sonata was his favorite, Tartini later wrote that it was “so inferior to what I had heard, that if I could have subsisted on other means, I would have broken my violin and abandoned music forever.”

Gavin latched onto the connection, but he couldn’t say a single word; he feared whatever he would say or do when his mouth opened would lead to embarrassment.

“This Devil I am searching for who leads Ouroboros is but a dream at this point,” Nines continued on, fingers gliding and skating through the air that hung between his body, and Gavin’s. “He taunts me and beckons me to come closer,” his fingertips then swept back over Gavin’s neck, “I would make a pact with this devil for my soul, if it just meant finally catching him, once and for all…” sighing, he dropped his hand away from Gavin’s neck, and the shorter man nearly collapsed weakly against Nines, who was standing behind him like a strong pillar.

Grinning triumphantly at him when Gavin turned around nervously to chance a small peek upwards, Nines hissed thinly down at his husband, “It appears that anytime I wake up, that dream fades, just as the music of the Devil’s Trill faded away from Tartini…”

Trembling with desire, confusion, anger, and resentment, Gavin leaned up slightly, and his head was tilted back as he stared wantonly at Nines’ lips. He didn’t know why he’d been compelled to do such a thing, but his eyes were drawn there naturally like a moth to a flame. The words Nines spoke seemed like poetry of the gods, suddenly…he was mesmerized, and he just wanted to watch as the words were formed on those dour lips.

“Hmmf,” Nines scoffed, “there’s no cure for madness, Detective Reed.” Standing back, he shut off the music when he made his way back to his office.

Mourning the loss of the beautiful, moving music, Gavin groaned as he held his head in his hands. Why did everything hurt suddenly?!? The spell was broken, and reality was so much more painful, and a huge bitch to face!!

Nines brushed past him, his shoulder bumping into Gavin’s. “I’m through with chasing dreams, Detective,” he almost screamed, but then gained control over his emotions and calmed down significantly. “I’ll see to it that I ensnare this devil, with _your_ help!”

“B-but I—” he was interrupted by a distinct burning smell, and then Nines cried out when he’d already ducked down into the secret passage, “Your egg’s burning.”

Gavin was beyond livid, and with his meal ruined, he threw the entire pan right into the sink with a loud ‘CLANG’.

“NIIIIIIINESSSSSSSS! YOU BASTARD!!!!!!!!”

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

His breakfast had been so horribly ruined, that Gavin instead chose to make coffee, and he hurried down the tunnels until he reached the ‘study room’-as he deemed and labelled it. Nines was already inside, and he was busy freezing the bit of Slo-Freeze they had gathered.

Gavin studied him for a moment, watching intently as Nines gathered the liquid and placed it into another longer cylinder before stuffing it inside a tiny freezer behind the white plastic table.

“Don’t give me that look, Detective,” Nines growled, barely looking up at Gavin, “we have to freeze it before we break it apart for further analysis.”

“So what exactly are we looking for?”

Nines stared down at the freezer, “We have to begin by milling the drug first, Detective. During the drug manufacturing process, milling is often required in order to reduce the average particle size in a drug powder. There are a number of reasons for this, including increasing homogeneity and dosage uniformity, increasing bioavailability, and increasing the solubility of the drug compound.”

Gavin nodded as if he understood all that. “So essentially break it down and see what’s inside?”

Nines rolled his eyes, “If you wish to view it in that crude way, then yes, Detective,” he closed the freezer door after carefully placing the vial storing the container inside it, “we can do that.”

Gavin nodded, “Great, so while it freezes up, what can I do?”

Nines offered him a creepy smile, and Gavin shrank back from it. Beckoning him forward with a finger, Nines led him over to a large rack against the left-hand side of the room Gavin hadn’t seen before due to poor lighting, but it held plenty of other liquids of various colors.

“You can begin by testing the compounds of these, Detective, and labeling them appropriately,” Nines instructed, “and then, I want you to dust and scrub every inch of these desks and shelves; as you can see, this room is quite dusty.”

Gavin practically screamed out, “What?!?! I’m not a fuckin’ maid, Nines!!”

“Language, Detective.” Nines’ voice was smooth and cold, his implacable expression giving nothing away.

Gavin nearly exploded again, and he merely kicked the wall behind him in retaliation, resembling a recalcitrant teenager more than a grown adult while he mumbled profanities under his heated breath.

But Nines didn’t want to hear any of it; he made his way towards the microscope and began adjusting the lenses and tubes, placing items Gavin didn’t even recognize beneath them as he studied them all intently.

After catching on to the silent sign, Gavin started to work. He arranged the shelves nicely and neatly, first, dusting them all-which took nearly half an hour-before wiping them down one more time. When the shelves were done, Gavin studied the vials holding certain liquids and chemicals he was too scared to touch. It all looked like a mad scientist’s dream house, but Gavin kept to himself and didn’t voice his comments as he worked hard on relabeling the vials that already had slightly smudgy writing on them from previous years.

Who knew how old they all were, too, but Gavin eventually finished, and he set the vials aside as he made his way over to a large bookcase containing tons of books about random things. Gavin found books about cooking, gardening, art, opera, music, crime, history, law, and politics. It was a very random-yet vast-range, and his eyes soon were drawn to a book about famous Italian pastries.

He started to work on diving into the book’s recipes, but it was difficult to do so with his nerves jangling in anxiety as they were whenever Nines wrote something down in a small notebook on the white, plastic table. The sound of his pen scratching on the paper was enough to make Gavin worry, and he tried being surreptitious about his ‘reading break’.

Nines had eventually moved over to a small cauldron-like item to the far-right corner of the table, and if Gavin didn’t know any better, he would’ve assumed that Nines was making meth, or something equally as sinister. In reality, he wasn’t, and he merely was testing the known compounds of the infamous drug Red Ice by throwing them into the burning cauldron that sat above a lit element. The blue flames danced and circled the little pot as if worshipping it above, and the liquids burning within the pot soon turned into a translucent lime green color.

Gavin had no idea what Nines was doing, for the substance didn’t even have a smell, but as he turned and watched Nines, he saw the android throwing in fragments that he’d frozen of Red Ice into the cauldron, and he leaned as far away from the burning pot as he could. Soon, the steam began rising up and twisting out before his face, as if possessed by spirits and ghosts to reach out for him in agony and pain. Nines merely stared with a tilted head as he observed the reactions and noted them down quickly.

As Gavin watched him write, he focused on the back of his hand, his fingers holding the black fountain pen elegantly, and then his eyeballs found his golden wedding ring…the painful reminder seeped into his brain, and he shivered as he looked away from it.

Nines’ mere presence in the room seemed to tap into something primal, something uncomfortable and angry; something that started at the base of his spine and clawed its way up without consultation from his brain. He didn’t know if it was just the chill in the air, or the poor ventilation of the tunnels making him dizzy, or just the fact that they hadn’t talked about any of the things that hung between them ever since they got married–

Gavin caught himself just before he stared at Nines all day instead of focusing on his work and notes. He’d left them abandoned by the edge of one of the desks, and his eyes fell on the last sentence he’d written before his mind somehow forced him to take another peek at Nines for whatever reason. As he stared atop the white plastic desk and into the little boiling cauldron, he found that at least, this time, the concoction was the color he supposed was a lot less insane-looking. Not that he had much to compare it to, after all, he hadn’t even watched a single episode of _Breaking Bad_. How was he supposed to know a thing about how to test, analyze, manufacture, and break down narcotics?

Gavin let out a small sigh as he mulled over the hard fact that his weekend had essentially come down to _this_ shit, when it was probably more than likely a fact that Hank and Connor were probably doing something cool and fun with Sumo.

_“And this is how I spend my weekend, folks; dusting shelves, desks, vials, and jars, while my husband tests and recreates drugs. Ain’t married life grand?”_

It wasn’t lovely or grand, and Gavin soon found himself growing weary of the heavy silence in the room between the two of them. None of it would’ve been as bad if Nines just talked to him…but he never so much as even looked up to acknowledge him.

As slowly as time passed by, it was fiddly, though. And, after forty-five minutes, mind-numbingly boring.

Having nothing else left to scrub and clean, Gavin threw his dust-covered cloth into a plastic bag, and for the final ten minutes, he decided to watch Nines instead. Unlike Gavin, Nines didn’t look bored while working on his mysterious drug potion. He looked...different. Almost peaceful, except for his eyes, which were narrowed, and highly focused. Gavin suddenly remembered the RK900 in the DPD-especially during his first meeting with him as he revisited those memories. It was a strange and direct contrast to how Nines appeared now…the Nines of last year at work had been so intense and serious about everything, and so good at all this…he made every _task_ he was given look easy, as though he could store all the information and data in the world in his head and just let them pour out, naturally, when the need arose.

But the Nines he knew today was different as he worked…he made it look like _magic._

Gavin hadn’t realized he’d been staring for over ten minutes, and Nines eventually glanced up at him, his blue eyes capturing Gavin’s, and then a sneer broke out on his face. Gavin swallowed thickly as he looked away and scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment after having been caught staring.

“See something you’re interested in, Detective?” Nines snarled, standing up as he switched the element off with the wave of a hand, and the steam rising up slightly simmered down and blew away when Nines breezed past it and around the white desk, instead making his way over to stand before Gavin. He chuckled deeply, “I do wonder what’s caught your fancy, you supercilious man…”

Gavin looked down at his feet as he struggled with a frown on his face, but it didn’t come easy to him after all the strange awkwardness running through his body. “No, it’s nothing,” he pressed out gruffly, “I was just thinking…”

Nines merely scoffed, “Thinking? I doubt that’s something you frequently even engage in, Detective, but do enlighten me.”

Gavin just growled, “Leave me alone.”

Nines crossed his arms over his chest, head held high as he haughtily stared Gavin down. “I’m afraid I can’t do that for the time being, Detective,” he hissed, “as much pleasure as it would bring me. We’re finished here, but we need to head up to the kitchen and begin meal preparations.”

He didn’t wait for Gavin; he collected their notes and shoved them all neatly into a drawer in the white desk at the front of the room.

Gavin sputtered in shock and confusion, “ _Cooking_??? Whatever for?”

Nines hissed coldly, “Elijah Kamski often visits me at least one Sunday a month, Detective,” he slammed a drawer shut and stood tall once again, “and I do believe I told you he often visits me, so you just proved you never listen, as usual, Detective.”

Gavin growled as he yanked his notebook out of Nines’ hands, “Alright then, _my husband_ ,” he snapped sardonically as he turned and made his way for the door, “let’s get cooking, then.”

He missed the small smile Nines threw at his back.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

“You wanna remind me again what we’re makin’?” Gavin groused as he neatly put on a cooking apron, watching as Nines tied the strings of his own cooking apron back without much effort or a struggle. They stood side-by-side at a large counter, a huge, wide chopping board before them as they stared down at freshly cut meat lying in meat-wrapping paper.

Nines gently pushed open the paper, “Pan-seared duck breast with blueberry sauce atop a bed of bok choy, wild mushrooms, pancetta, and shallots,” he grinned down at the items as he pointed at them before continuing on, “served with a side of roasted potatoes seasoned with rosemary and thyme, it is a rather savory dish,” he concluded with a smug smirk.

Gavin rolled his eyes, “Jesus, even Kamski has a very pretentious palate, huh?”

Nines hummed as he rolled up his white dress shirt sleeves, having changed into something far less fancy as soon as they left the tunnels. “I wouldn’t say that, Detective,” he began as he rolled out the meat tenderly, as if he were handling fine China, “but he is a very dear friend to me, and I intend to treat him well.”

“Yeah, yeah, I get it.”

Gavin watched as Nines stretched his hands upwards and gently yanked open a white cupboard door. He handed out to Gavin fresh black pepper, though it had yet to be ground, and he passed along brown sugar which was packed and not softened as well. Gavin eyed it curiously, but Nines merely produced a mortar and pestle and gently pushed it forward so it rested against his knuckles.

Staring down at it, Gavin frowned, and then Nines sighed dejectedly. “Surely you know how to use this, Detective?”

Not wanting to be insulted further, Gavin snatched the pestle and mortar, and he tore open the package of round, fresh black peppers. Muttering under his breath, he held the black pestle, and in another hand, he steadied the white mortar. He dumped the round pepper pellets within its circular body, and they bounced around until they sat evenly at the bottom. Holding the pestle firmly, Gavin began grinding them.

As Nines gently cleaned the duck meat, his knife delicately swished and cut through the lean meat, and Gavin began envying how skilled the android was even when it came to preparing a meal. He moved gracefully as he tenderly handled the duck, pressing down on it as he evened it out over the cutting board. Gavin’s lip curled upwards, and unbeknownst to him, he expressed his contempt for his husband through his ‘grinding’…if it could even be called that, now. He was practically bashing the peppers now, the heavy, blunt pestle slamming and crashing against the bottom of the mortar.

Nines sighed as he stopped midway seasoning the duck. “Once again Detective, you show your lack of understanding and inability to follow through with a simple task,” he swiftly moved over behind Gavin, and before the startled man could do anything, Nines inched his body closer, and his chest pressed firmly against Gavin’s back.

Long arms reached around Gavin’s sides, and they rested over his own as he held the pestle and mortar firmly. At first, Gavin assumed that Nines was going to try and take the items away from him, but then, he was proven wrong. Nines rested his hands on top of Gavin’s, and as he leaned over Gavin’s shoulder, he softly spoke into his ear while he helped guide Gavin’s hands and fingers.

“There is a clear distinction between grinding something, and bashing something to bits, Detective Reed,” Nines warmly and calmly stated in Gavin’s ear as his hands moved on top of Gavin’s in slow, deliberate, and circular motions, just barely adding the perfect amount of pressure. “Surely even a wayward Detective such as yourself would be able to distinguish between these two actions?” As Nines pushed down on top of Gavin’s arms, he also knew how and when to pull away, making sure the pepper wasn’t ground to dust. Bits of it still happened to be present as he helped Gavin grind, and anytime he moved, his shoulders and chest rolled forward into Gavin’s back.

Gavin was a mess internally. His abdomen, stomach, and hips kept gently rolling forward into the kitchen counter, and he had to bite down hard on his tongue to keep silent as Nines massaged and rolled his hands on top of his own. There was a delicious heat pooling between their bodies, and Gavin’s biology betrayed him by reacting to it right away. He hated that his hormones and testosterone blasted through his entire body, and in no time, he was almost fully erect.

Still, that didn’t stop Nines from practically massaging his hands with his own, and rubbing his hips deliciously against Gavin’s ass. Layers of clothing of course separated them, but in Gavin’s mind, he’d already undressed Nines a couple of times. He imagined the well-built android naked, and he barely was able to stop himself from panting in exertion when Nines shifted. He pressed himself a little closer to Gavin as he sneered and whispered into his ear, “Now let’s see if you can manage this by yourself…”

_“Waaaaaah?!?!? NOOOOOOO!”_

That deliciously warm pressure was removed and off his back, and Gavin whipped around, practically dropping the pestle roughly onto the counter. Gavin then stared down at the floor, trying to inch closer to the counter just in case Nines could see a little tent forming between his legs and making the apron rise up slightly…it appeared he had not, however. Nines merely went back to his own work, pressing a meat tenderizer mallet down against the lean meat before himself.

_“That was it?!?!? He can just walk away from that like it was nothing and it had no effect on him?!?!”_

Gavi burned with anger, and his arousal thankfully went away as he instead focused his energy on repressing his heated rage for Nines. It was just beyond his comprehension how the android could merely do that to him-possibly understanding how he would react-and then just walk away coldly. Son of a bitch!!

Gavin shoved aside the black pepper once it looked good enough, and he moved on to the brown sugar, tearing the package open with his teeth as he imagined tearing his teeth into his husband’s neck.

Yes…this was satisfying.

As Gavin gently massaged and separated the firm brown sugar, he giggled to himself as he conjured up images of himself shoving Nines roughly into a wall, punching him in the face roughly a few times, and then strangling him. He would shake him and break him, and he wouldn’t stop until he himself was beyond tired.

Gavin moved to the fridge and pulled out the butter, melting it in the microwave just a little so it would be ready for the duck meat. The thoughts he held of beating the crap out of Nines persisted, and he smirked and giggled softly to himself as the butter melted slowly as it spun around in the microwave.

He still saw himself biting down on Nines’ nose, and then over to his neck violently. Oh, it would be sooooooo much what he deserved for being such a stuck-up, pretentious, snarky asshole!! He deserved the beating of a lifetime, and Gavin wanted to give it to him for hours on end. Perhaps he could even throw a chair at his head, who knows?

When the butter had melted, Gavin snatched it out of the microwave, and practically threw it onto the counter in its little bowl. Nines ignored him, however, moving on to grind some salt onto the duck meat, turning it over gently as he liberally spread salt all over the duck until it was covered evenly everywhere.

Gavin was still enjoying his thoughts and fantasies. Nines began to make the sauce, and he added the balsamic vinegar and red wine to the pan he selected for the duck. He motioned at Gavin, next, “Please bring me olive oil; I’ll be needing two tablespoons of it for the meal.”

_“As you wish, your Royal Assness!”_

Gavin moved over to the spices and oil rack hanging above on a wall near the fridge, and he selected ‘extra virgin olive oil’. He slammed it down on the counter by Nines’ hand, and he crossed his arms as he tried going back to his fantasies of biting Nines’ neck violently. His aim had been to fantasize about delivering pain, just to see Nines put in his damn rightful place, for once.

He had been enjoying himself when suddenly, the images took an interesting turn. Whatever the cause for it was, Gavin didn’t know, but he did know that the images in his mind had gone from violent and aggressive, to sexual and pleasurable. Where the Gavin in his imagination had previously been biting down hard over Nines’ shoulder to get him to bleed out thirium, this Gavin was now pressing love bites onto his husband’s skin; sucking, licking, and nibbling tenderly. Nines was even nibbling back, and he used his tongue to coil it around Gavin’s earlobe before he sucked it deeply into his hot, wet mouth as his large hands explored Gavin’s body sensually…

Gavin was hard once more, instantly.

“SON OF A FUCKING BITCH!!!!!!!!!!”

Nines whipped around angrily, LED light red. “I beg your pardon?!?”

Gavin tore off the cooking apron, bunching it up between his legs as he snarled at Nines. “Just leave me the fuck alone, Nines!!” He ran past the startled, confused android, flinging the apron down just by the stove.

Nines followed him for a moment, expression more heated and conflicted than angry, now. He cried out in a biting tone, “Detective, get back here!!”

Gavin was already ascending the steps, and he yelled back at Nines viciously, “Prepare your own fuckin’ meal, and leave me the fuck alone!! Okay?!?”

Sighing, Nines stepped back, “Fine! I don’t know what’s gotten into you, Detective,” he snarled coldly, “but you had better compose yourself before Mr. Kamski arrives in less than three hours. Have I made myself clear?”

Gavin stomped up the steps, “Fuck off.”

He practically burst in his bedroom, making sure the door was perfectly and tightly shut and locked before he threw himself down on the bed next to Shelley. The Nano-Bot regarded him with mild curiosity, but she seemed a lot better now. Her light turned a solid blue, and she merely gave off a few tiny ‘beeps’ before floating up above him.

“Detective. What. May. I. Assist. You. With?”

He sighed as he gently shoved her away from his face. “Not now, Shelley,” he looked at his hands with remorse, then. “I just want to be alone for a while, please.”

“Noted.” That was all she said as she floated off the bed and made her way down to the floor where she hid beneath Gavin’s bed like a sad little pet.

 _“Fuckin’ forgot to ask Nines how to ‘fix’ her…shit.”_ Gavin sighed in exhaustion and frustration as he moved up along his mattress. His back landed on something solid and rough, and he grunted in discomfort as he reached beneath himself and yanked whatever it was out from under his back.

Holding it up to his face, Gavin saw it had been his phone…

It was still off, but Gavin’s curiosity had peaked once more. Wanting nothing more than to forget whatever the fuck was going on with him and his messed-up brain regarding Nines, Gavin’s hands shook for a moment before he made his choice.

Pressing down on the power button, he started his phone up, waiting for the messenger app to open up so he could return Raoul’s messages.

Whatever was going on, he was uncertain about, but he felt it was somehow a lot clearer and ‘safer’ to at least turn to someone else for some words of advice, comfort, and solace, so that’s what he was aiming to do.

If his husband couldn’t provide him with what he needed, perhaps another man could…

 

* * *

 

Nothing seduces your husband more than Classical Music.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Seriously though, all jokes aside, THE FUCK?!?!?! NINES! YOU HAD AN OPENING, AND YOU DIDN'T TAKE IT !!  
> WHYYYYY!??? 😭😭😫😫  
> Also, Gavin's slowly falling in...l.o.v.e. 🙄👀😲  
> But still, baaaaad move on Gavin's part to message Raoul again!!!! 😭😭😡  
> Kamski will be over for dinner in the next chapter, my mans!!


	23. Bon Appétit

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The exquisite piece for this chapter is Beethoven : Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat major, II. Adagio  
> Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OSWOmKGVw2k

 

**Gavin R: sorry for running away last night…just going through a lot atm…**

**Raoul: hey, no sweat. i realized i was being a bit creepy. sorry for that.**

**Gavin R: its ok. i reacted badly…wasn’t all ur fault**

**Raoul: no need 2b nice 2 me, Reed. i drank a little 2 much b4 u showed up, but thats no excuse for my actions. Plz accept my apologies.**

**Gavin R: no need 2 apologize! im not the best at socializing, so things r likely 2 get awkward sumtimes … dont know if that makes sense, but i legit wasnt tryin 2 run from u.**

**Raoul: nah, ur good but if its ok with u, i was wondering if i could see u again?**

**Gavin R: y?**

**Raoul: theres been a lot on my mind too, and i think im confused about who i am…**

It was at this moment in the chat history that Gavin had to step back and read over Raoul’s messages at least six times before the wheels in his mind began turning and working. How was it that he was living in a world where someone as confident and magnificently sure of himself as Raoul Spencer was having doubts?? And more importantly; what kind of doubts, and what did they have to do with Gavin??

Trying to find a polite way to ask these questions, Gavin texted slowly as he whispered the words out loud, reading them back to himself before sending them off.

**Gavin R: its ok to be a little unsure of urself, but i bet you will gain your strength and confidence back. It’s just the divorce probably, right? If so, i am here if u wanna talk about it!**

_“Yep! Seems fair, seems friendly, and doesn’t seem desperate!!”_

He sent it off, chewing on his lower lip nervously as he waited for Raoul’s response. It didn’t take too long, however, but Gavin didn’t like what he read. It disturbed him more than anything else, and he had to grab onto a pillow for support as he squeezed it between his fingers while his heart raced wildly in his chest. Still, that didn’t change or rearrange what had been written and sent to him, and no matter how hard he tried looking beyond the words on the screen, he was unable to.

**Raoul: it’s not that im not confident in myself…im just not certain about my sexual orientation like i used 2 b when we were in college.**

Gavin threw the phone down as he stared blankly across the room. _“Okay, what the actual ass did I just read???”_ He picked the phone up again, turned it over, and stared at the screen. The same words and the same sentence were still there, no matter how many times he blinked and tried picturing them gone from the screen. _“Okay…it’s not my imagination then…what the fuck…”_

It suddenly felt too unreal for him. There was just no way that out of the blue, an old college bully wandered back into his life, had been recently divorced, and now was questioning his sexuality. No…reality didn’t work like the movies, and Gavin snapped himself out of his reverie, and stared down at the phone.

His fingers began texting, but then, Raoul initiated a Facebook messenger voice call…

“HOLY SHIT!!!!” he sprang off the bed, scaring both himself and Shelley when his footsteps thundered along the floors. Like a flash of lightning, the little Nano-Bot emerged from under the bed, her light red and alert.

Gavin held out a hand, “Shelley!! Don’t worry about this, okay?”

She hovered around him, but didn’t seem to want to go anywhere. Gavin’s phone vibrated and vibrated, the volume still low, thankfully. But how was he going to talk to Raoul without Nines hearing???

Looking around the room wildly and desperately, Gavin’s eyes landed on the standing closet storing his clothes, shoes, and suitcases.

_“Perfect!!!!”_

He made a clean break for it, hiding himself away within it, and closing the door behind himself softly so he wouldn’t rouse suspicion. Shelley had gotten in at the last minute with him, and her light illumined the dark closet, along with the glow of the phone screen.

With a shaky finger, Gavin accepted the call, and he pressed the phone against his ear tightly, though his hands trembled.  “Umm…hey?”

Raoul chuckled, “Sorry to just call you up out of the blue like that; it was getting kinda annoying to text, plus, I figured this is something that has deep meaning for us both, and should be talked about on voice.”

While Gavin agreed, there wasn’t much he could actually vocalize; he was still frozen and paralyzed with fear, and very soon, the smell of the duck roasting and cooking away from the main floor hit his nostrils. It made him terribly hungry, but also served as a grim reminder that his _husband_ wasn’t too far away. Reality was that while Gavin was hiding away in a closet-ready to chat with another man-his husband was in the kitchen cooking and setting up the fancy, expensive dining set, getting ready for the arrival of Mr. Elijah Kamski in less than an hour.

Gavin groaned, “I’m sorry, Raoul, you just caught me at a bad time…”

The other male hummed deeply, and it was a rich tone that drove Gavin insane.

_“Wasn’t it enough that my own husband fuckin’ tortured me not even an hour ago??? Now this hunk is doing it, too?!?! WHYYYYYYYYY?!?!?”_

“I’ll try to keep this brief, then,” Raoul offered, and it made Gavin sigh out in relief. He tried focusing on what the duck looked like, and how Nines had decorated the kitchen and dining room, hopefully bringing out the best and most expensive champagne or wine for them…

“Gavin,” Raoul began, his voice softly caressing Gavin’s name like it was one of the most precious things in his life, “is it weird for a guy to be questioning his sexuality after years of living with a woman, and only having dated and slept with women all his life before that?”

Gavin looked around the dark closet, feeling Shelley rubbing her body over his legs, as if begging with him and pleading for them to leave and exit the closet. Her head tilted up at him, and she let out a dull ‘beeeep’.

Raoul apparently heard it. “What was that?” he asked as he chuckled, “I’m not on speaker or something, am I?”

Gavin chuckled as well, though his was more nervous sounding. “Umm, no, I wouldn’t do that to you, Raoul.”

The other man let out a little gasp, “Then what would you do to me, Gavin?”

_“Holy fuck…did he just…no…no fuckin’ way!!!!!!!”_

He still voiced the question aloud, “Excuse me???”

“I asked you what you would do to me…” Raoul snickered, “…if you found out I was maybe bi or gay?”

Shelley let out a louder ‘beep’, indicating that she was serious, and that she’d had her fill of the conversation. Enough was enough, and she rammed her head and body against the closet door. The noises were loud, and Gavin was certain Nines would hear it if she kept at it. The door rattled and shook so violently, that Gavin was positive she would break through it if she kept it up.

He slid a leg between Shelley’s body and the door, and he hissed at her to stay quiet.

Raoul chuckled, clearly finding his gasps and sighs of frustration amusing to listen to. “You okay there, Gavin?” he playfully laughed, “I hope I’m not making you uncomfortable or anything; I’m just trying to flirt with a guy, see if I like it…”

Gavin frowned immediately as he gently pushed Shelley away from the door. “Oh, so you’re using me for your own self-discovery, then, right?” What nerve. How like Raoul Spencer to use and dispose of people whenever he needed to.

Raoul gasped, “Nah come on, don’t accuse me of that, Gavin!” he sighed, “I just think you’re…I dunno…you’re like the opposite of me!” he explained slowly, hanging on every word as if he were savoring a wonderful meal, “you’re confident, brazen, proud, and you don’t give a shit about what others think! I like it!! It’s so refreshing to see someone who doesn’t live for pleasing others, Gavin.”

While these compliments were lovely to hear and boosted his ego a great deal, something at the back of Gavin’s mind tugged at his conscience and told him to end the conversation quickly, before he-or Raoul-said something they would both end up regretting later. Besides, he was still _married_ , as much as that pissed him off.

“Raoul,” he began, trying to find some shred of honesty in all this while Shelley tried floating above his leg so she could resume bashing herself against the closet door. “Unfortunately, I’m married, and while it’s not a marriage that’s a typical one, it’s still a marriage, and I can’t just—”

“Woah, woah,” the other male interrupted, “it’s not a _typical_ one??” he chuckled, as if not ready to believe it, “the heck does that mean, Reed? Are you in an arranged marriage or something??!”

Gavin closed his eyes and sighed. He hated how impulsive and unable he was to control his mouth sometimes, but the damage had already been done; the cat was already out of the bag. The only thing he could’ve hoped to do was perhaps vent to someone who was somewhat of a ‘friend’…maybe it would help him feel better about the odd situation he was trapped in, anyway.

He shifted as he stared around in the closet. “It’s not an arranged marriage like that…he just…my husband just…” he had no idea where he was going with this, but he threw something out anyway, hoping it would make sense, and that he wouldn’t have to explain further.

“…my husband just takes care of me, and it’s like a ‘business’ marriage, if you must know…” he ignored Shelley’s little growls as her light flashed and remained bright red, “…we don’t really get along, and again, it’s just not something conventional, and I don’t want to talk about it anymore!!”

Raoul was silent for a moment, and Gavin wondered if he’d scared him off or made him think and believe he was weird. He wouldn’t blame the guy if that were the case, but what else was he to say?

After some time, Raoul snickered. “I find that hard to believe, Gavin,” he lowered his voice a little, next, “I mean…who wouldn’t want to be with a guy as wonderfully appealing and good-looking as you?”

Gavin cleared his throat, “Look, Raoul,” he sighed, “it’s not that I don’t appreciate what you told me, it’s just that—”

“Detective!!!!! Detective!!!!!”

What amazing timing. Now, Gavin didn’t even need a lie to get out of this one.

“I’m sorry, Raoul,” he said as he gently picked Shelley up, and cradled her to his chest, “my husband’s calling for me. I have to go.”

“Can I still see you later?” Raoul wasn’t giving up any time soon, and it pissed Gavin off.

_“Maybe it’s just better to say ‘yes’ for now, and that way you can change your mind later!!”_

Yes…giving in seemed like the only way he was going to be free, and he grunted, “Sure, but I don’t know when I’ll be free again.”

“I’ll message you,” came the reply, and then Raoul chuckled, “later, Reed.”

Once he’d ended the call, Gavin turned the doorknob, and he took fresh air into his lungs. He was happy to be out of that confined space, but he was also being stared intently at by Shelley. The Nano-Bot merely struggled in his arms for a moment, and he set her down with a sad look upon his face.

He pointed at her once she was on the floor safely, “Keep this between us for now, okay?”

She tilted her head at him. “Error. Error. Does. Not. Compute.” Why did she sound so angry with him?? It had to have been his overactive imagination, right??

He nodded as he made his way over to his bedroom door, “I know, Shelley,” he threw it open, hanging back into the room for just a moment. He peered over the second-floor railing before he whispered to himself, “It doesn’t compute for me, either.”

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Nines really had gone the extra mile for Elijah Kamski. He had set the table with some of the most expensive China Gavin had ever seen. The plates and utensils were decorated with lovely markings and Chinese symbols, but before Gavin could study them intently, Nines pushed him aside as he brought out the wine.

“It’s more than a willow pattern, Detective Reed,” he explained as he set three champagne glasses, which confused Gavin.

He pointed at the extra one, “You drink?”

Nines avoided eye contact, “I can drink tea only; a concoction Mr. Kamski usually gifts me with whenever we visit each other.”

Gavin ran the tip of his index finger around the rim of one of the glasses, “That’s news to me!”

“Indeed,” Nines gently pried it out of his hands and placed it at the head of the table, “Elijah Kamski often does a lot of things for me, which I’m eternally grateful for.”

Gavin snarled, “Oh? How sweet…” he turned away from the table, eyeing the expensive wine and feeling his blood boiling when he read the label on the bottle. It appeared that Nines was going to serve Elijah Kamski a bottle of Chateau Lafite’s 1869 wine.

Gavin shook his head as he set the bottle down gently and glared at Nines. When the RK900 met his eyes, he sneered.

“What is it now, my _husband_?”

Gavin shrugged coldly, “I don’t understand why this nutbar gets the bottle of the good stuff, while I don’t even get soda around here.”

Nines waved about the table, “I felt it was apropos considering the ‘Oriental style’, Detective,” he explained as he held up the bottle of wine, smiling at it as if it comforted him the most in the world, “the Chateau Lafite’s 1869 bidding war for rare vintage resulted in a price of $230,000 for a standard sized bottle available at a Sotheby’s auction in Hong Kong in 2010. Though ancient, this is a highly sought-after delicacy.”

Gavin nearly vomited, but studied the Chinese-styled plates and utensils. “Okay, okay,” he moaned in anguish, “I got it! Just…just can you lay off the ‘artsy-fartsy’ stuff for tonight, Nines?”

Nines merely gave him a foul look, his lips making a moue of protest just before he threw out a low growl. “I’m not going to alter my way of living just because _you_ think I should do so, Detective,” he hissed irritably as he folded the white, clean serviettes into little swan shapes that sat in the center of the plates. As Gavin stared at them, he hated to admit that he found them cute, beautiful, and a lovely work of art. He nearly slapped himself, then, but he was pulled away from the little make-shift swans when he heard soft classical music playing.

It was a piano concerto, no doubt, but Gavin couldn’t recognize it at all. He never listened to classical music before often, but for some reason, it was soothing him a lot lately. He’d never liked it or cared for it before, but now that Nines played it constantly, he found himself growing accustomed to the sound and beauty of it.

Still a little shy to ask about the music, he chose instead to comment about it. “This is very lovely, Nines…”

“Indeed,” the android agreed, “it’s Beethoven, Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat major, II. Adagio…one of Mr. Kamski’s favorite pieces.”

Gavin growled, “Does _everything_ have to revolve around that snob?”

Nines threw him a disgruntled look. “Don’t be so dramatic, Detective; and I recall once asking you to drop your self-superior and supercilious attitude long ago.”

As Gavin had been in the midst of arguing, the front doorbell rang, and Nines smiled brighter than Gavin had ever seen or known him to. His whole face lit up, and he made sure each and every plate was centered perfectly on the vast, long dining room table before he made his way down the hall to greet their guest.

Elijah Kamski had arrived.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin had been sent back upstairs to dress into a black and white three-piece suit, much as Nines was now wearing a dark blue three-piece suit that practically made him shine with handsomeness and perfection Gavin had never before seen on the tall android. He’d even gelled the stray bang of dark brown hair, pushing it back and within the rest of his shortly cropped strands as he greeted Elijah Kamski and welcomed him into the home.

Elijah Kamski was wearing a suit that was split in colors; on the left side, his suit was deep purple, and on the right, it was bright ruby red. His shoes were plain white, and he hugged Nines tightly, as if greeting a brother.

His hair was a little longer than Gavin had seen it whenever he’d given speeches and presentations around Detroit, and he was unaccompanied, which was rather odd, considering how he had a very attractive and friendly female android he’d named ‘Chloe’.

“Good to see you, Elijah,” Nines greeted, stepping back and taking the gift basket and bags Kamski had gifted him with pleasantly, “though I wonder where the beautiful Chloe is?”

Kamski merely chuckled, his eyes appearing smaller as little wrinkles formed in the sides. “Oh, I’m going ‘bachelor’ tonight, Nines,” he joked playfully, “besides, sometimes women need their personal time!”

Nines set the bags in the kitchen as Gavin slowly descended the steps. He hadn’t meant to take so long getting ready, but it was too late, and he decided to make a quiet entrance.

As he entered the large kitchen, he saw Nines pulling out decent-sized boxes containing some strange containers. Gavin assumed this was the brew Elijah had fixed personally for Nines, and while it didn’t seem to be like ‘tea’ in essence, Gavin assumed that’s what Nines referred to it as anyway.

It was held and contained in blue bottles once Nines opened the boxes, and he grinned proudly at Elijah. “They’re prepared just as I like them, thank you, Elijah.”

Kamski snorted and laughed, “So prim and proper, Nines!! I should get to work making you a beautiful wife one of these days!”

That was when Gavin tiptoed into the kitchen, and Kamski must’ve heard him. He wheeled around, gasping once he laid eyes on him, and he laughed nervously. “Oh, I do apologize!” he cried out, “I…I didn’t know Nines had another guest over!” he immediately offered his hand out to Gavin, “I’m Eli—”

“Yes, you’re Elijah Kamski,” Gavin smiled politely, and when Kamski raised a thin, black eyebrow, Gavin smiled even wider, “everyone knows who the famous android creator is.”

Kamski bowed his head in appreciation, “I appreciate the sentiment, Mr…?”

“Reed, Detective Gavin Reed.” He finally shook hands with Kamski, and the man gasped when he heard his full title.

“Detective?” he smiled, though there was a hint of concern in his eyes. “I’m not in any trouble, am I?”

Gavin laughed warmly, “No, you can relax fully well tonight, Mr. Kamski; I’m only here as a guest as well.”

While it’d been a half-joke, Nines didn’t seem to appreciate it, and he glared away at Gavin. Ignoring his moody husband, Gavin smiled brightly at Elijah Kamski, letting the other man study him carefully.

Kamski’s cold blue eyes finally studied the golden ring on his finger. “Oh!!” he exclaimed in surprise, his eyebrows raised up dramatically, “and so it appears you’re spoken for, as well then?”

Gavin blushed, “Ummm—”

“She must be a real beauty!” Kamski interrupted, and then behind him, Nines closed one of the kitchen cupboards a little loudly. Staring at him briefly, Kamski’s facial expression grew a little concerned. Nines ignored them, reaching over to the stove as he attempted to put on oven mitts so he could bring their meal forward.

Kamski then located the matching golden wedding band on Nines’ left-hand ring finger, and he gaped as he leapt back a few feet. “Nines?!?!” he placed a hand on his stomach, eyes wide and curious at the same time, “you…y-you’re married?!?!”

“So it appears I am, Elijah.”

Gavin turned around, holding his head down as he walked into the dining room with a bit of disappointment and anger in his blood. He’d heard of rumors that Elijah Kamski was a very open-minded individual, but if that were the case, why did he look so green and sick in the face when he pieced together that Gavin was with Nines?

Kamski and Nines entered the dining room next, and Kamski dimmed the chandelier lights a little, eyeing Gavin coolly while he sat down at the end of the table that was facing the China Cabinet.

Nines placed the cooked duck in the center of the dining room table, and he sat down at one end of the table, and Gavin sat down right across from him at the other; the only place with a plate and utensils.

_“Great, now I’m going to have to look at his grumpy face during the entire meal, huh?”_

Kamski chuckled as he smelled the duck, and then let out a content sigh as his eyes closed. Nines pulled out a carving knife, and he delicately sliced some breast portions for Kamski. He then handled the bottle of wine with extra caution, and he didn’t spill a drop as he poured up to more than halfway of the glass for his friend, first.

Eyeing Gavin’s plate and glass, next, Nines poured him a smaller portion than he had with Kamski, but he still handled the knife delicately and cut with precise accuracy until Gavin’s plate was decorated nicely with duck and a few berries right on top.

Kamski clasped his hands together as he chuckled at Gavin and Nines, “You know what? This is a good thing!” he nodded over at their wedding rings, “if I can create a sentient creature that not only chooses to go deviant and adopt its own lifestyle, but picks its own mate?!!” he whistled as he clapped again, “now _that’s_ the ultimate jackpot!!”

As Gavin’s wine was poured, he looked up into his husband’s eyes, wondering whether Nines was going to say anything to Elijah Kamski about the truth of their union, but it appeared that Nines wasn’t going to utter a single word. Once Gavin’s glass had been halfway full as well, Nines turned and sat across from Gavin at the far end of the table, and he waved a hand at the assortment of vegetables, exotic salads, and the duck.

“Bon appétit,” he smiled proudly, leaning back as he helped himself to a glass of the strange blue liquid Kamski had brought with him.

As the piano and orchestra in the background played on softly, Gavin took the first bite out of the duck. His mouth watered around it, and it had cooled down perfectly; not too cold, and not too hot. The distinct flavors and hints of rosemary, lemon juice, and thyme were each tasted by his taste buds, and it made Gavin crave even more. The meat itself was delicious; not too dry, and not too soft. It was just the perfect temperature, and as he collected some of the cubed, baked potatoes from the side-trays onto his plate, he felt Elijah Kamski’s eyes on him.

Peeking up, Gavin confirmed that the man was indeed staring at him with a curious expression on his face.

Gavin wiped his lips and smiled, “Yes?”

Kamski gave a little smirk, “Nothing…I’m just surprised that I never was invited to a wedding!” he chuckled briefly as he pointed a butter knife at Nines, “I thought I’d be the first to know, old friend.”

Nines shrugged, “It was kind of a surprise for me too, Elijah.”

The man gasped as he looked over at Gavin, then. “So how did you two meet? And who asked who???” his eyes were filled with playfulness, and he sighed as he leaned back and held up his glass of wine, “I’m usually not this nosy, Detective Reed,” he tapped a fingernail on the edge of the shiny glass, “but I must say, you two make quite the interesting pair…”

Gavin gazed across the dining room table, and he saw Nines throwing him a serious look. He picked up on the hint, and he merely forced a laugh as he said, “We met at work, and I asked Nines to be with me, Mr. Kamski!” He truly hoped his exuberant answer would suffice.

“Please, call me Elijah!”

He nodded, “Elijah.”

It wasn’t a satisfying answer, but as long as it brought an end to the questions from Kamski, it would have to do. The other man seemed to buy it, and he held up his wine glass high in the air, the reflections bouncing off the glass, the beverage within, and forming interesting shapes that twisted about on the ceiling and off the walls.

“A toast then,” he began happily and excitedly, “to the wonderful new couple I’m more than honored to be dining with tonight!!”

Following his lead, Gavin and Nines held up their glasses as well, and they all toasted without touching their glasses together. Regardless, the feelings were all passed around nicely, and they began eating.

Gavin felt Nines watching him, but he did his best to ignore it. He pointed down at his plate, and he smiled, “This is a very good duck confit.”

Kamski snickered in amusement, but he held up his napkin and placed it over his lips as he closed his eyes and tried keeping his composure. His shoulders shook as he laughed, but Nines merely threw Gavin an unimpressed stare.

 _“What the hell did I do wrong, now??!?”_ Gavin was about to ask, but then Nines held his glass down to his lap.

“It’s pronounced ‘con-fee’, Detective Reed,” he corrected coldly, “the ‘t’ is silent, and furthermore, this isn’t duck confit.”

 _“I wish YOU would be silent,”_ Gavin entertained in his mind, although he smiled right through his hurt and pain, eager not to fall into the trap Nines had set out for him which would no doubt involve a boat load of misery and embarrassment in front of their guest.

Gavin didn’t have time to be embarrassed; Elijah Kamski laughed louder, but it was a very friendly laugh that didn’t seem to be aimed at Gavin specifically and only for the purposes of mocking him or alienating him simply because he’d mispronounced a word.

“It’s alright, Nines,” Kamski said as he wiped his eyes with his napkin softly and delicately, “I really like your Detective Reed just as errant as he is…” he tossed Gavin a small wink before continuing to eat his meal.

No one heard Nines whisper, “You’d be the only one, frankly.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YOU GO SHELLEY!!! Get Gavin away from Raoul like a good, protective daughter!!! 😥😥😣😣  
> So now, Raoul has created MORE suspense, drama, and just probably equal amounts of annoyance in everyone reading this chapter...sorry my mans 😪😪😫
> 
> Legit I have no idea what to even say...I'm conflicted, myself. But at least Elijah was pretty chill!


	24. Turbulent Waters

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In which Gavin literally talks to inanimate objects.  
> Wish I were kidding.

Gavin got up that following Monday morning with his alarm going off like an emergency siren. He prepared and finished his coffee while Nines stood by the front door waiting for him, and they drove to the DPD in silence. Gavin hated to admit it, but he was still rather pissed off with Nines for how he’d corrected him in front of Elijah Kamski during dinner last night. Since Nines had chosen to do that, Gavin ignored him for the remainder of the meal, and even well after Kamski had left to return to his own home.

Kamski assured them he’d be returning for another visit soon, which Gavin found he actually was looking forward to. He simply had no idea that Elijah Kamski would grow on him, and he was already beginning to think of the man as a good friend. Kamski was a very optimistic man, he was engaging, fun to be around, had a good sense of humor, and he was relatively down to earth. Gavin hated that he’d once underestimated and misjudged the man, but he felt so grateful to finally see the best side of the man.

When Kamski left, Gavin and Nines cleaned up the dining room and began loading the dishwasher silently. Not a word was spoken between them as they swiftly cleared everything and got ready to retire for the night.

Gavin wondered if he should’ve at least said ‘goodnight’ to his husband, and he tried working his mouth open to push out the phrase a few times. It was a wasted effort, however, as Nines merely walked away from him every time he approached.

Realizing that being kind and trying to ‘patch’ things up after a sour dinner was going to be fruitless, Gavin soon gave up on the prospect of it altogether. It didn’t seem to make a difference either way to Nines at all; he merely locked himself in his office as he prepared for the following week’s duties and tasks while Gavin went to bed with Shelley curled up against his stomach.

Still, as wonderful as bonding with her was, Gavin had the question of what was going to happen to Shelley, and it had haunted him all morning as he sat in the passenger seat of the black Cadillac. It’d been silent until Nines parked the car, and when he turned over to gaze at Gavin, he paused.

“You’re projecting,” Nines drawled lazily, “whatever is the matter?”

_“Might as well fess up…”_

Gavin sighed as he massaged his temples. “It’s Shelley…” he saw Nines offering him a confused look, and he rolled his eyes, a little impatience seeping into his system. “The Nano-Bot, dipshit!!” he sneered as he wrapped a hand around the door handle, eager to get out of the situation, and the car.

Nines groused, “Mind your language, husband of mine,” his eyes turned cold, and malicious, but he strangely still held a small smile upon his face as he spoke, “what is your issue with the Nano-Bot?”

Feigning sweetness, Gavin batted and fluttered his eyelids and eyelashes at Nines sarcastically a few times as he smiled sweetly. “No issue, dearest,” he nearly threw up when he actually heard himself saying that word out loud, “she just needs a fixer-upper, I think…”

“Hmm? I beg your pardon?”

_“Oh, for goodness sake, don’t play dumb with me!!”_

Gavin stopped himself from saying that, however, and he merely brushed his black sweater off as he looked around everywhere and at anything other than Nines. “She can only follow half of my instructions, Nines,” he sighed out softly and sadly, “it’s not very useful, and I don’t like repeating myself if she doesn’t understand me at all.”

Nines gathered his belongings as he nodded at Gavin, “Very well, Detective Reed,” he pushed open the car door, “I’ll show you how to program and teach her how to update her knowledge regularly after the work shift.”

Gavin could hardly believe it. He’d been expecting an argument, more mocking, belittling, and a big show of a snarky attitude. But Nines had agreed??? Just like _that_??? Something had to be amiss…

Rubbing his forehead, Gavin chuckled in disbelief. Nines merely paused; hand upon the car door as he froze while cocking his head almost curiously at Gavin. “What’s amusing you, Detective?” Nines’ tone was rather gentle, which only made Gavin feel more baffled. Perhaps his husband had woken up on the right side of the bed-err, coffin this morning?

He gaped at Nines, “Nothing, I just…” his throat was dry, and he swallowed, “…I just wasn’t expecting you to really listen to me so quickly, that’s all.”

Nines rolled his eyes. “Why wouldn’t I listen to you, Detective?” he asked quickly while staring outside the front of the car, “you should know that you can approach me for anything, and I’ll always do my best to provide for you.”

 _“Okay, who the hell are you, and what on God’s green earth did you do with the rude, sarcastic Nines I’m so used to arguing with??”_ Gavin was utterly speechless, but he nodded in gratitude as his mind and brain literally tingled and then went numb. He had no idea how to read and assess the situation, so he thought it was better to just remain silent. Perhaps this indeed was a dream, and he wasn’t willing to take a chance to ruin whatever the heck wonderland or alternate universe he’d stumbled into where Nines was somehow complying with his wishes easily.

Clearing his throat, Gavin pointed out the window. “We should…we should go…”

Nines merely gave him a half-smirk. “Astute suggestion, Detective Reed.” He then exited the vehicle while staring half the time at Gavin. Trying to ignore those blue eyes on him, Gavin exited the vehicle as well, albeit slowly, as if under a spell of some sort.

He followed Nines to the entrance of the DPD, a small smile playing at his lips the entire time.

Gavin could hardly believe that Nines had not only accepted his request so openly, but he’d also referred to Shelley as a ‘her’ and ‘she’, instead of ‘the Nano-Bot’ or a machine.

_“This is progress, Nines, this is progress, and I won’t let it go now!!!”_

He definitely could say that his mood had cheered up exponentially, now.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin sat at his desk, going over the case notes and feedback he’d received of the Saunders investigation. While he was happy that they had their puppies finally taken away from them and had to be placed under severe supervision by their addictions counsellor, Gavin himself was still a little upset and worried about what he was going to do regarding Raoul Spencer.

The man even texted him at work, and he’d been sweet and kind, but it was beginning to trouble Gavin.

He checked his phone, hiding it on his lap as he snuck a glance down at the screen.

**Raoul: good morning, handsome, hope u have a wonderful day at work. i hope its okay to let u know that im thinking about u, and i hope we can see each other soon.**

It was the kind of message that almost wandered into a ‘love note’ territory. Gavin had written a few of them to guys he’d found cute in college, only to delete or rip them up moments later out of embarrassment and a fear of being caught and labeled as a ‘homo’ and mercilessly beaten up. But as such, here was a text message that was endearing, lovely to read, warm, and very positive, and he was _still_ left feeling badly.

Gavin read over the message one more time before he saw a shadow looming over his desk. Hiding his phone in his jean pocket, he looked up and gasped in shock when he saw Kelly, one of the new recruit androids Nines had given a tour and trained not too long ago. Gavin noticed that she no longer had the ‘ **Officer in Training** ’ card around her neck, and he smiled.

“Good morning, Detective Reed!” her warm brown eyes were cheerful, and they made him feel a little less worried now that he had someone to talk to.

“Glad to see you’ve made it on the team, Kelly,” he congratulated her politely.

She beamed at him, her LED light shining and blinking blue. “Oh thanks!!” she let out a happy giggle, “I’m proud to finally have made it on the team!”

Gavin kicked his feet up on his desk as he placed his hands in his lap comfortably; the same old pose he often would take when he was trying to relax. “Did you always want to become a cop?” he asked dully, wondering if she would even answer such an obvious question.

Kelly didn’t seem to mind it, however. She flashed him a bright smile, and she held a few binders and notebooks up in her arms, pressing them against her chest as she wore a simple DPD officer uniform. 

“I guess I always wanted to help people,” she said, and then giggled, “ _and_ androids! Let’s not forget!”

Gavin smirked, “Yep! Mustn’t forget the androids!”

She nodded eagerly, her short, bob-cut brown hair bouncing along with her head motions, “As long as I help one person at the end of the day, it’s what matters to me!”

Gavin beamed at her. “If only majority of the officers felt the same way you did, Kelly,” he twiddled his thumbs as he sighed, “don’t get me wrong; most of us come in here thinkin’ the same thing and holdin’ the same attitude…but…” he shrugged, “…it’s this city…something’s wrong with it, I think…it just sucks the life clean outta ya…”

He frowned, wondering why he was so negative and pessimistic suddenly, but Kelly didn’t appear to be as affected by the pessimism as he thought. She bent down a little, brushing aside some of his notes and folders.

“Detective Reed,” she began in a gentle, soft tone, “I hope I’m not really overstepping my bounds or anything, but you seem a bit…” she paused, tapping her kneecap with the spine of her binder as she shook her head. “Nooo! Wait,” she let out a nervous chuckle, her LED light yellow, “that came out the wrong way, I’ll start again!” Clearing her throat, she smiled as she looked into Gavin’s eyes with an air of seriousness. “Detective, correct me if I’m wrong, but I thought that when people-especially humans-got married, they would be happy?”

Catching the look of regret in her eyes, Gavin set his feet down on the floor as he crossed his arms over his chest. Kelly immediately misread his body language, and she thought he was offended. She inched away, holding her head down as she pursed her lips and then sighed.

“I’m sorry, Detective,” she turned away, “I should’ve just minded my own business, but you looked so sad!”

Gavin reached out for her, “Kelly, hey, come here…” he watched her turn around slowly, as if apprehensive and untrusting of him. He coaxed her over gently, as if she were a frightened animal. Eventually, she was leaning against the edge of his desk, and Gavin leaned forward as well, his elbows resting on his thighs as he bent midway down so he could stare into her eyes.

He sighed-an air of sadness in his breath. “Look, Kelly,” he began, trying to collect and gather his thoughts and words one at a time, “I am happy…just…I’m just going through something else, but I can safely tell you that marriages can be tricky to work out.”

Unsure of whether she believed him or not, Gavin ran a hand through his hair, then swiped his favorite lighter off the top of his desk. It’d been resting between some papers and a carton of untouched cigarettes, and he seemed to have forgotten it all this time as mountains of paperwork had stacked upon it.

_“Wait…why the fuck did I stop smoking?? Better yet, WHEN did I stop smoking?!?!”_

Kelly pressed a gentle hand down over his own as he snapped his lighter open and shut. The prospect of having a smoke no longer comforted him like it once used to, and he found it odd that he wasn’t even craving a cigarette anymore. What was happening to him?!

“Detective?”

He looked up when he heard Kelly’s soothing voice. “Hmm?”

“I just was asking if Nines truly makes you happy?”

Oh.

He didn’t know why, but for some reason, he’d assumed she was going to lambaste him with her growing fears and concerns that Nines was somehow taking advantage of him and abusing him, and he was better off without that type of a bond. Ideally, that was mostly true in logical realms, as well as when it came to matters of the heart…but this morning, Nines had completely behaved differently to what Gavin was so used to seeing and expecting from him.

Had Nines acted out like his usual taciturn, cold, removed, aloof self, Gavin knew he wouldn’t even waste a second telling Kelly that he really was in a troublesome situation, and he wanted and needed help. But Nines hadn’t done anything to him so far this day to suggest any reaction of the sort…

Truly, Gavin was baffled, and he was stuck in his own thoughts as Kelly stood patiently before him.

Still, Gavin appreciated her concern as a friend, and he wasn’t going to jump to conclusions. He leaned back, tossing the lighter against his keyboard, and it clattered there loudly. How was he even to explain this to her?? Where would he start?? He couldn’t just say: ‘oh hey Kelly, funny you should ask all this, and it’s nice of you to be so caring and concerned, but I didn’t marry Nines for love; I married him because my pain-in-the-ass boss told me it was the only way I would be guaranteed protection from this psychotic gang trying to fuckin’ kill me!’

_“I can’t explain it to her, and even if I did, she’d never understand.”_

Holding onto realism, Gavin held Kelly’s hands in his own. “Kelly, listen to me! You’re a very, _very_ good officer!” he encouraged with a sincere, warm tone, “you’re empathetic, you’re kind, you’re smart, you’re sincere, and trust me, that’ll take you miles ahead in this place!” he scooted forward a little, looking intently into her eyes as she smiled appreciatively at him. She appeared less worried about him, now, but her eyes still held some uncertainty within their depths.

Caressing the smooth skin on the back of her small hands, Gavin beamed at her with gratitude and sincerity. “I think I can count myself lucky that I met you and became your friend, and I want you to know that I seriously appreciate your concern for my wellbeing.” He nearly leapt back in shock when Kelly got off his desk, and threw her arms around him in a tiny, short embrace.

“You’re very welcome, Detective Reed,” she smiled gently at him as she collected her binders together once again, “just please don’t hesitate to come and talk to me about _anything_ that’s troubling you, okay?”

Gavin saluted her and winked, “Don’t worry, I won’t hesitate!”

She saluted back, giggling before she turned away and headed across the bullpen. Watching her go, Gavin felt a tug of sadness in his gut. She really seemed to remind him of a younger version of himself when he first started out as a rookie cop…how time had indeed zipped by.

As he stood there reminiscing, Gavin didn’t see Nines walk up behind him, and he loudly yelped in fear when Nines placed a hand on his shoulder. A few officers giggled, and Gavin was livid. He shoved Nines hard in retaliation, but the tall RK900 barely moved as he stared down at Gavin blankly.

“What the hell do you want, now??” Gavin hissed softly, eyes darting around as he made sure no one was listening or watching any longer.

The blue eyes of his husband sharply squinted down at him. “There’s no need to be rude, Detective Reed.” Nines then nodded up at Fowler’s office, “I’m only here to tell you that Captain Fowler wishes to speak with us, Detective,” he brushed past Gavin, already leading the way without another word.

Having no other options, Gavin sighed as he pulled down on the end of his sweater and straightened himself out as best as he could. As he started to walk away from his desk, his found his eyes falling naturally onto the cigarette carton.

He paused abruptly.

……………..

His fingers began twitching for a moment while he sized up the cigarette carton.

……………….

Gavin waved a hand dismissively at it, “Nah, fuck that.”

He took a few more steps, but then his gut tugged, his heart ached, and his lungs burned…

Spinning around quickly, Gavin ran towards his desk, and he swiped out at least two cigarettes. He stuffed them in his sweater pockets before giving himself a random thumbs-up.

“Cool! I got this!” he huffed with determination as he turned himself around, and he had barely made it across the bullpen towards Captain Fowler’s office, when he peeked over his shoulder.

_“I swear, they’re calling out for me…they’re calling my name, and they’re cryin’ for me!!”_

Groaning in despair, Gavin ran back to his desk, and he leaned over the rest of the cigarettes while shaking. “Okay you guys,” he whispered down at them softly, “I can only take like…hmmm…maybe two more of you? So please, pleeeeeeaaaaseeee stop torturnin’ me!!!”

He snuck out another two from their package, bowing his head to them gratefully as he began walking backwards. “Okay, got my fill! That’s it! I promised myself no more, and no more precisely means no mo—”

“DETECTIVE!!”

He leapt up at once when he heard Nines screaming for him.

Nines glared at him, standing by Fowler’s office with the door held wide open. He beckoned for Gavin with the wave of his hand, “Move it, Detective.”

Pouting, Gavin motioned at his cigarettes, “I’m tryin’ to quit, Nines! Could you just give me a damn break, for once??”

The android’s eyes narrowed into thin slits. “You don’t get accolades for the cessation of your disgustingly filthy habit, Detective,” was the sarcastic, cold reply, “now get in here at once!!”

Hanging his head down low, Gavin sighed, “Yes, Nines.”

Apparently, a few officers had already heard the little banter, and as Hank breezed past Gavin with Ben Collins at his side, the older Lieutenant leaned over and shoved Gavin in the back playfully. “Hubby-poo got ya whipped, eh Reed?” he taunted with an impish grin upon his face.

Gavin merely held his head up high as he sang out in a silly tune, “Go play in traffic, Anderson.”

Truth be told, hated how submissive he’d become lately, but that was a conversation he vowed to have later with Nines…when they were at home.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

“For the last fuckin’ time, Fowler,” Gavin roared as he shoved the tea mug out of his face, “I don’t want any damn tea!!!”

Captain Fowler sighed, clearly defeated as he sat back in his chair and pushed the hot tea to the side of his desk atop a book and a pen. “Alright Gavin,” he nodded, folding his hands together as his fingers intertwined, “let’s just talk.”

Gavin stared at Nines, who was seated closely beside him. Fowler’s office seemed even more gloomy, cramped, and stuff than before, and no amount of tea or coffee was going to do the trick.

Gavin rolled his eyes as he dropped a hand down to his lap. “Just ‘talk’??”

Fowler nodded, “That’s right, Gavin.”

“Talk about what, sir??”

“Just talk, Reed,” Fowler responded in a snippy tone, “shouldn’t be too difficult, right?”

_“The fuck is this?? Therapy?!?”_

He forced himself to remain calm as he tapped his hands on his thighs. “Look sir,” he pushed out semi-painfully, “I don’t understand what the purpose of this meeting is. Now, unless you or perhaps Nines here have something to say or critique about me or my work, I’d just like to get back to my desk, if it’s alright with you.” He stared down at his lap, his fingers suddenly a little cold and pale, and he wriggled them, as if testing whether they still had life in them or not.

Fowler merely chuckled as he blew on top of his warm coffee, the smell of it floating around in the room. It sadly did nothing for Gavin. He just really wanted to know why they were here, and he hated to admit to himself that a part of him deep down inside worried that Nines had said something to Fowler.

Sneaking a glance up at Nines, Gavin felt his cheeks turning red when he looked up at saw that Nines was already staring at him. He looked away immediately, shifting to the right of his chair, just to create some space between his body, and the android’s.

Captain Fowler rubbed his chin as he studied Gavin more than Nines. “Well, I suppose I must say that the report you both submitted on the suicide of the Ouroboros member was more than satisfactory…”

Gavin still sensed a ‘but’ coming on.

Fowler merely caressed his chin as he smiled a phony smile. “So Gavin,” his eyes twinkled in amusement, “is everything okay?”

Gavin quirked an eyebrow, “What the heck kind of a question is that, Cap??”

Fowler’s smile fell away. “Just answer the damn question, Reed.”

Grumbling, Gavin merely gave a curt nod, “Yes, yes it’s fine, why wouldn’t it be?”

As if he didn’t trust his words, Captain Fowler’s dark eyes looked at Nines, next, and the RK900 met his gaze equally and confidently.

“Nines?”

The android merely hummed deeply, “I have nothing further to add, Captain,” he casually leaned to the side, hands folded in between his long legs, “Detective Reed speaks the truth; there’s nothing much happening currently.”

Fowler grunted, “And what about the case?”

Nines frowned a little, “It’s slowly making progress, but we’re working on it, Sir,” he stated with so much confidence that his sharp voice cut through the air like scissors through silk.

Fowler leaned across the desk, hands weaving their way around his hot mug. “I’m very confident in you both,” he said as he pointed at them bluntly with three thick fingers, “in fact, you two have been so cooperative and quiet, that I’m frankly a little…” he winced, as if debating within himself as to whether he should continue with his sentence or not.

He decided to finish it. “…Well, truthfully, boys,” he chuckled lightly, “I’m a little disturbed, if you want to know the god’s honest truth.”

Gavin threw his hands up into the air. “I fuckin’ give up,” he announced.

Captain Fowler squinted at him, “Pardon me, son?”

Gavin growled at him, “If it’s not one thing, then it’s another, right Cap?” he pressed on, before Captain Fowler had the chance to speak. “If Nines and I are arguing, then it’s a big, bad issue, and if we’re not, it’s _still_ an issue?!? I don’t understand what we’re supposed to do, and how we’re supposed to behave around here anymore, Jeffrey!!”

“I want you _both_ to just be yourselves…” Captain Fowler held up a hand, eyes clenched as he corrected himself swiftly, “…errr, I mean, not the way you were before with that level of animosity, but you know! Just…just fucking act normally, for god’s sake!!”

Even Nines looked mildly perturbed, now, but he kept his comments to himself as he stared at the wall behind Captain Fowler’s head.

Gavin held a hand against his forehead, slowly and gently massaging his head, before he massaged and pinched the bridge of his nose. “I don’t understand, Captain,” he sighed out painfully and slowly, “we’re doing our best, and the least you could do is not drag us in here like this in front of everyone, don’t you think?”

Fowler pointed at him with his mug, “Hey, this is a routine check-up, Reed,” he groused, “need I remind you, _you both_ agreed to this, and it is outlined in your documents that you both signed and sealed off to me and Human Resources before your wedding, remember??”

_“I didn’t actually read a word of that shit in there, Fowler, and you and I both know that.”_

He only nodded, “Yes Captain, but I—”

“No ‘buts’, Reed,” Fowler interrupted rudely, “now tell me how you two are getting along as you ‘cohabit’.”

This was beyond awkward, now, but rather than talk and volunteer more information than he already had, Gavin stared at Nines desperately. While he wasn’t facing Gavin, Nines somehow caught the perplexed expression Gavin directed at him from his peripheral vision, and he moved his eyeballs over to meet Fowler’s darker ones.

He hummed, “We’re doing fine, Sir,” he gave a little half-smile, as if to emphasize the ‘truth’ and his words. “We’re doing just fine, and everything’s as it should be.”

Captain Fowler clapped, “Splendid!!” he leaned back as he grabbed the handle of his mug and swished the warm beverage within it about. He winked up at Gavin, “Glad you’re rid of that stomach bug, by the way, Reed.”

Gavin blushed, immediately recalling the lie Nines had fed Captain Fowler on his behalf.

Continuing on, Captain Fowler took a small sip of his drink. “Now that everything is great and you two don’t seem to want to kill each other, I’d like to just let you both know how grateful and honored I am to have you both in my employment…”

As Fowler droned on, Gavin felt his phone vibrating. Very carefully, while his superior went on and on, Gavin stared at the screen of his phone, and he opened up the Facebook messenger app.

He’d received a new message from Raoul, and it simply read: **just wanted to wish you a happy afternoon. Still thinking about u, and i hope you can look at this and smile as you remember how awesome you are, Gavin Reed.**

Sure, it wasn’t the first compliment Gavin had ever received in his life, nor would it be the last. But there was something very kind, genuine, and sweet about it, and it helped a smile etch onto his face as he read the message quickly one last time.

Carefully hiding the phone down by his side, Gavin texted back: **thnx, u r way more amazing. i will definitely keep on smiling, and if it’s okay to say…im smiling because of u…**

As he sent the text off, he hid a small smile behind his hand, shoving the phone back into his sweater pocket.

Maybe Raoul was right; maybe he needed to remember just how awesome he truly was. It may not have counted for much, but it was all he had for the time being, and he was going to take whatever he got in order to feel good, and in order to enjoy the good through the bad. He needed to survive through the storms up ahead, and although he worried about how intense they could be, at least there was a silver lining in the middle of the grey clouds, and it was smiling down at him.

It would always be in reach, at least.

Now, he was smiling proudly, and he’d never felt better.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gavin, no, no, NO! NO NO! *Facepalm* 😣😣😣😣😓😓  
> Nines is legit right THERE IN FRONT OF YOU SAYING HE WILL GIVE YOU EVERYTHING, AND YOU'RE LISTENING TO RAOUL'S SWEET TALK????  
> *Sigh*


	25. Malodorous Assignments

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A particularly smelly chapter, but we get to see more of the android narcotics team!!! YEEEUUSS

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, here's a mini note before you all enjoy the chapter. 
> 
> I just wanted to remind everyone that it's perfectly acceptable to have a different viewpoint about certain characters in my story. It's also fine if some of you believe Nines is too cruel, too abusive, too mean, and that Raoul is a better choice in a lover/partner for Gavin.
> 
> I just have to say that if you're going to try and enjoy THIS type of story the way I've written it, then it would probably behoove you not to look at Raoul - or even Nines- in a one dimensional manner, because you will likely be disappointed and or shocked down the road. Nothing in my story is one dimensional. It's a complicated plot. I only ask you guys NOT to jump to too many conclusions in the comments section. A few people are doing this, and I'm getting a little weary of it. I don't mind if you think Nines is bipolar or rude, etc., but remember, the fact is this is JUST a STORY and things WILL change as I said a hundred times. 
> 
> This story WON'T suit everyone due to the slow burn and psychological aspect, and that's totally fine. There's something on this site for everyone, but again, I ask everyone to be patient, and not to think in absolutes, otherwise, you're going to end up not making this experience good for others who genuinely like the story.

Gavin couldn’t believe that Nines had ordered him to wipe and wash down the long desks in the secret room beneath the mansion, but he had. As cruel as Nines could be, Gavin’s mind just never would’ve expected it of him. However, it was a reality, considering they were inside the room as soon as they got home from work, and the moment Gavin had swallowed the last bite of his pizza down, Nines had yanked him out of the chair he’d been sitting in. He practically marched Gavin down the staircase and down the long tunnels, barely uttering a word to him the entire time while Gavin ran to keep up as he screamed all sorts of profanities at Nines for interrupting his meal and relaxation time.

When they reached their secret room, Nines had produced a bucket of cleaning supplies, a sponge, and paper towels, and he handed them over to Gavin.

“You know what to do.” That was literally all Nines had to say to him before he sauntered off to the little freezer hiding away beneath the white, plastic table at the front of the room. He fished out the frozen sample of the Slo-Freeze, and he hissed when he saw that it had changed in color ever since it’d been exposed to freezing temperatures and elements.

Nines got to work right away, examining the specimen under the microscope first, and then he brought it over to his ‘cauldron’. He held the frozen sample between a silver pair of long tweezers, careful not to get any of his own ‘DNA’ mixed in with it as it slowly began melting. The steam from the pot hit the frozen piece, melting it quickly while it trickled downwards into little drops as it mixed with the solution that Nines had poured into the pot prior to melting the Slow-Freeze. The bizarre concoction already in the pot was meant to distill and separate the ingredients and agents within the Slo-Freeze for further analysis.

As Nines did this, Gavin had to literally slave away by scrubbing the seats of the long tables, beneath the tables, as well as over their surfaces. He scrubbed away with an old sponge Nines had provided for him, and within half an hour, Gavin felt his back and shoulders really aching. He had to bend over and get on his hands and knees to do an efficient job at cleaning beneath the tables, but Nines didn’t seem to care. He worked silently and diligently, barely making a noise as he every-so-often rose up from his seat to grab something off a shelf, or to make a few notes and then continue with his ‘brew’.

Gavin had no idea what he was doing, but he found he didn’t care. He worked away at his ‘Cinderella duties’, cursing Nines every chance he got, but then as the next half hour dragged on, Gavin suddenly felt he was being watched.

This wasn’t an eerie ‘I’m-being-stalked’ watched type of feeling, however; it hit much closer to home, and the ‘stalker’ wasn’t too far away. Gavin had tried denying it at first, but it soon grew to be too much, and far too painfully obvious. Nines was staring at him, and he was staring quite a _lot_. Tossing it off to his over-active imagination at first, Gavin merely went about his ‘chores’, wiping the tables and seats, but when he got up off the floor, he caught out of the corner of his eyes Nines looking his way.

Gavin knew there was nothing behind him except for bookshelves, older decorations, some charts hanging on the walls, and an old grandfather clock that never worked. Nines couldn’t have been staring at any of those things, and he soon figured out that Nines was indeed staring quite intently at him.

Gavin ignored it to the best of his abilities however, and he silently cleaned away, careful not to knock down any of the chemicals and strange items in the weird jars to the left of the room as he did his work.

Soon, both Gavin and Nines had engaged in a strange ‘battle of wills’, and anytime Gavin looked over at Nines, the RK900 would look away well beforehand to make it seem as if he hadn’t been staring at all to begin with. Gavin was dead set on trying to catch Nines in the act of staring at him, but the android had damn good timing, and a very strong, keen sense of when Gavin was going to peek over at him. He would always just look down ever so slightly; his head tilted down as he stared at his notes, and then he would study and compare Red Ice compounds to Slo-Freeze at the precise moment when Gavin barely shifted his eyes up towards him.

Gavin had yet to catch him fully staring at him, and he soon grew tired of the silent game. It was immature, and a huge waste of time for them both, so he focused on his work, and allowed Nines to do the same. Perhaps it was all nothing, and perhaps Nines was only staring at him because he wanted Gavin to finish with his cleaning and leave the room quickly.

Yes, that had to be it!

Gavin chanced another glance over at Nines, but the android was still peering down fixated at the bubbling pot before him.

 _“He’s so lucky he can’t breathe,”_ Gavin mused, holding his sponge tightly in his hands and willing himself not to breathe in too deeply, _“that stuff really is starting to get to me!!!”_

The steam flew up and above Nines, circling his head for a moment before it rose to the ceiling. Still, Nines mixed in more chemicals, and Gavin soon felt the effects of each and every one of them starting to get to him as the scents and odors of the mix blew about in the room and touched every corner and inch of the place.

While the malodorous scents seeped into the room, Nines just made his brew, though his mixing motions became a little tighter than usual. He was still silent; still steadfastly pretending to ignore Gavin. The silence got to Gavin pretty quickly, especially now that he knew he himself had begun to sweat-not only from the physical exertion, but from the heat the pot and element was giving off.

More importantly, why was Nines so damn calm in the middle of all this?! Gavin knew he’d stopped his cleaning, and he merely sat down on one of the tables, staring openly at his husband. He’d expected Nines to catch on and start yelling at him to get back to his work, but he never did. What had happened to the Nines who’d once thrown mugs and flowerpots at Gavin’s head when they’d gotten into plenty of arguments back during the early winter months in the DPD?

Their tumultuous relationship had been a grand spectacle for all. Gavin recalled Nines pulling on his sleeves violently sometimes in order to get his attention. Sometimes, the RK900 had kicked a small chair in anger due to something Gavin had said in the heat of an argument, and yes, they’d many times thrown a few things at each other while giving each other death glares back and forth.

However, the Nines currently seated behind the white desk at the front of the room seemed so sullen, so tired, and so…different…

Gavin couldn’t believe that he was somehow missing the ‘old’ Nines.

 _“Don’t rejoice too soon,”_ his mind supplied in a slight warning, _“the night is still young, and Nines has always been clever about his actions!!”_

Agreeing silently with his thoughts, Gavin’s eyes trailed over Nines’ body as the RK900 sat back and was already half-way through modifying a blend of Red Ice with the Slo-Freeze in order to draw his comparisons for his own conclusions.

Nines was dressed in grey dress pants, and a black cotton long-sleeve dress shirt, though the first two buttons were undone…when had he unbuttoned them?? Gavin hardly ever recalled Nines wandering around with his shirts unbuttoned, and this new sight was rather…strange to look upon.

The room somehow got warmer, and Gavin could barely breathe, now.

He stared up at the walls and ceilings, looking around for a ventilation system somewhere-anywhere, but was unable to find one. No wonder he couldn’t breathe properly, and with the dark walls pressing down on him, he looked up sharply and finally caught Nines watching him.

Something-perhaps a cry of surprise or joy-got caught in the back of his throat. He’d expected himself to immediately snap at Nines as he often would in the past. He thought he would’ve at least mocked the android for being so obvious about his staring, but Gavin couldn’t even will himself to open his mouth, let alone get his vocal chords working. It was as if someone or something had bewitched him, and all he could do was stare back for a moment, and Nines finally looked away.

The spell was broken; the look was gone; the moment had been a fleeting one. Gavin didn’t understand what had happened, but whatever it was, it’d left him with a lot of questions, and he knew it was only going to be a matter of time before those questions turned into accusations.

He was still unable to stop himself from starting it, though he knew he was going to end up regretting this later.

“Doesn’t it bother you?” he asked, suddenly angry. Nines didn’t answer; he just looked at him, a sharp knife hovering over a little plate resting beneath him which contained sliced-up pickles. Gavin assumed that the pickles would come in handy later for preserving a part of a formula for the tests Nines had laid out in plenty of notes compiled at the front of the room clipped on the whiteboard. Judging from the empty glass jar sitting next to Nines, the sample of whatever Nines needed to take from the pickles would soon go inside the jar, to later be filled with the same, viscous material he’d discovered, and the weird items in similar-looking jars on the shelves near the back of the room.

Gavin sighed irritably, “Come on!” he paused for a moment, his tongue darting out to wet his dry lips. “It must have _some_ kind of an effect on you, Nines!”

His husband merely sneered, but remained silent.

Gavin continued, “Does it not…I mean…that we’ve not –” he paused again, waving his sponge as he felt irritation growing within him, “--that there’s all this...oh, come on, Nines!” he cried out in despair, “you know what I’m talking about!”

While Gavin couldn’t bring himself to say it, he hoped Nines caught on to what he was trying to get out verbally. He knew he was as inarticulate as ever before in his life, but he had to wonder just what exactly was going on between them. As petrified and ‘held back’ as Gavin was when it came to this matter, he knew it was a hurdle they _both_ had to eventually address like reasonable, mature people.

They were _married_. Gavin knew that much, and he also knew that he himself was a sexual, grown adult male with expectations, feelings, and desires. What was more important was that he knew androids could have sex and enjoy it even more so than humans, and it bothered him that in the last two and a half weeks he’d been married to Nines, he’d never heard or seen of an instance where Nines expressed any interest in taking a lover.

Did he ever have a lover in the past?? Had Nines even once been in love with someone else? Was he even gay?! Was he _really_ so cold and callous that he was incapable of feeling anything like sexual desire or love?? All these questions burned holes in Gavin’s brain relentlessly. Until he had _some_ answer, he knew he just couldn’t sleep tonight. Not under the same roof as Nines; not when he had no idea who the man he’d married even was.

Such a life.

Nines merely stared coldly at him before he looked down at his work, though he hadn’t continued to actually resume with his pickling. He appeared to be as distracted by something as Gavin was, though the other man didn’t want to know what it was for the time being. Anything surrounding Nines’ sexuality and ardent pursuits greatly troubled Gavin to no end, and he seriously didn’t understand why that was.

 _“I don’t remember him hanging out with anyone from the DPD; male or female,”_ he accurately thought to himself while clearing his throat loudly.

Trying not to make eye contact with the dour android, Gavin breathed out, “You _do_ understand me, right Nines?”

There was a long, pregnant pause, unfortunately.

“I don’t much care,” growled Nines eventually. “Make this room clean, as I instructed nearly an hour ago.”

Gavin let his eyes fall back to his desk. He silently obeyed; his hand moving rapidly as he guided his sponge over the wood of the tables with sharp, angry movements behind each action. He soon gave up; the silence and mystery behind it all was bothering him.

“You know, we could talk about it,” he offered, unable to stop now that he’d already started.

A head shake was all Nines had to offer him. “I’m not asking you to embellish right now, Detective.”

Gavin tossed his sponge aside for a moment. “Do you _really_ hate me that much?”

“I can’t imagine what you want to talk about, Detective,” Nines snapped mordantly. “Nothing has changed-nor will it-as I’ve repeated countless times in the past.”

Of course, it had indeed been a stupid question, and an empty pursuit. Gavin had no idea what he was even pursuing. Perhaps the fumes from the chemicals and the heat of the room really had gotten to his brain. He’d been asking for what?? Nines was right; what was there to even really talk about? Just because they were ‘married’, didn’t mean that Gavin had to demand things from Nines and hold expectations that these demands would be met. It was ridiculous, and the sooner he got it out of his system, the better.

Looking up at the ceiling, Gavin sighed, remembering that he’d left his phone upstairs in his room. He’d wanted to at least talk to Raoul about this, but there was no way he could do that now when Nines was staring intently at him and watching his every move.

_“Maybe he’s really not watching me…maybe I’m just super paranoid?”_

Gavin looked over at Nines, and he saw blue eyes piercing into his own. He immediately looked away in fear, though a trace of something else burned into his veins and warmed his blood when he’d made eye contact with Nines.

_“Nope…he’s definitely staring!! What does he want???”_

As Gavin went through the thoughts and ideas in his head, he entertained the possibility that Nines was only staring at him because of how uneasy and antsy he’d been acting for a while, now. He was constantly fidgeting, constantly staring up at the ceiling as he thought of his phone, and all these things had made him fumble around almost clumsily. It was no wonder Nines was watching him carefully, and the RK900 never ceased to, not even when Gavin nearly knocked over the bucket of filthy water that had once been clean. Not wanting to mop the floors again, Gavin sighed as he collected and composed himself as best as he could, and he made sure to put everything away in proper order while Nines silently cleaned up his ‘work’ station as well.

They made their way back to the main floor of the mansion in no time, but Gavin was far too exhausted and in dire need of sleep to really think of anything else. He practically threw himself onto his bed, nearly crushing Shelley in the process. His eyes were half-closed already.

He knew he had messages from Raoul waiting for him, but he was so tired that he promised himself he would look at them… _and_ get help for Shelley later. He cursed himself for being so forgetful as of late, but he was so, so very tired…

Tomorrow.

Right now, sleep was all he needed, and he knew it would do his mind and body wonders.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

“What the hell?? Why did you go in the opposite direction away from the DPD, Nines??” Gavin sat up cautiously, holding his coffee thermos in his hands as he watched the familiar police department building grow tiny and out of his view while Nines went down another road entirely.

The tall android peeked over at him as they drove to ‘work’ the following morning, and he held an icy look upon his face. “Today, Detective,” he announced, “we’re going to head over to homeless shelters, garbage dumps, and a landfill.”

Gavin’s jaw dropped, “What?!?! Why???”

“We have to remove Red Ice, heroin needles, and other dangerous drugs from these places, as they can turn into infectious HIV sources, especially for those who are less advantaged in our society.”

Gavin rolled his eyes, “This is whack! I’ve never heard of anyone else having to do this crap!!”

Nines gently stroked the steering wheel; the first sign of his patience being tried by Gavin. “It’s all a part of what the Narcotics Unit often does, Detective,” he ground out, a little gruff sounding, “and with the dwindling manpower we have, this is a task you should be more than inclined to take part in.”

Gavin resisted the urge to smash his elbow into the window. “Yeah, but isn’t that job for the city sanitation workers?!?”

“No,” Nines corrected, turning the car left and into the parking lot behind an old, dilapidated building that served as a retirement center as well as a homeless shelter sometimes. The building was often overcrowded, however, and it was evident of that today. Many elderly men and women slept outside and on the sidewalks. Some of them were accompanied by pets, and the moment Nines and Gavin got out of the car, they greeted them, and others asked for money or food.

Gavin felt horribly for them, and he was about to hand out loose change to them, when another DPD police cruiser pulled up next to their car. Once parked, the vehicle doors flew open, and Kelly, Dom, Phil, and Joe marched out.

What were they doing here?!?

Keeping his voice low, Gavin inched closer to Nines as he spat in his ear, “Bringin’ all your android buddies with you, Nines? Charming.”

He stood back, greeting Kelly first with a tiny hug, and then the next friendly android-Dom-who was always smiling, reached out and offered Gavin a high-five. His golden eyes were happy, large, and round, and he flashed Gavin a bright smile while Joe and Phil kept back, greeting Nines with yellow LED lights and curt nods.

“Hey Detective!” Kelly cheerfully greeted, pushing back a short hair strand behind her ear, “you ready to clean up these foul streets??” she tossed him a friendly wink, and Dom slapped him on the back lightly.

Gavin sighed blearily, “Ready as I’ll ever be, guys…”

Nines straightened himself up, and he clasped his hands behind his back. “Follow me.”

For the next hour and half, the team searched through trash cans, dumpsters, recycling bins, and plastic disposal bins for needles, traces of Red Ice, as well as any other harmful drug while the homeless people who lived on the street watched them. Even though he was wearing protective gloves, Gavin groaned as he shoved through mountains of trash and junk, smelling the stench of it all and recoiling in disgust. He could’ve sworn he was going to throw up, and he barely had anything in his system, either. The small hospital mask Nines had given him was utter shit as far as keeping the foul odors away from his nose, and he resisted the urge to fling it at Nines whenever the RK900 breezed past him.

Nines stood by, barking out orders and instructions while his android team worked double-time. They moved faster than Gavin, and in no time, the area had been thoroughly cleansed and searched, and Nines told them all to get back in their vehicles so they could drive down to the closest landfill and resume their search.

“There’s a high chance that Red Ice and possible traces of Slo-Freeze-now that you and I know how easily it can be hidden away, Detective-is disposed of in larger landfills, and we need to remove it all before it contaminates other places.”

They got out of the car once again, the gravel and dirt crunching beneath their shoes, and Gavin had to immediately yank up his hood over his head as he stood beside the team and stared down at a disgusting, slime-colored ravine. What had once been water was now a light brown sludge, and atop it floated mountains of garbage, waste, clothing, torn-up mattresses and pillows, burnt household furniture and items, wood, leaves, torn-open black garbage bags, rotten food, and even animal fur.

It smelled absolutely foul, and Gavin had to bunch up the front of his sweater and hold it over his nose and mouth, otherwise he was certain he would vomit. There was just noooooo way Nines expected them to climb down into the deep ravine between the sides of the landfill right in the center, and then dig through all the shit…nooo…no way!!

The sun was beating down over their heads, and it made the situation worse, as it heated up the trash that was already leaking out of the bags and floating in the toxic sludge below. It was all literally cooking, and Gavin had to smell it whenever a slight breeze blew by. A few ravens swooped down, pecking at the garbage bags and animal fur, carrying some pieces away with them into the sky as they cawed proudly and happily.

Nines was already leading the way, pointing up and down the long path of the ravine. “These sewer systems lead to major hospitals and clinics; they share the same flow of connection, most convenient.”

The android with the short, spiky black hair and light brown eyes named Phil followed closely behind Nines, carefully watching his steps. “So this is why you wanted us to start this now?” he asked in a mildly perturbed tone of voice, and Nines turned around and smiled at him coldly.

“Why not, Phil?” he then looked over at the African American android named Joe, at Kelly, and over at Gavin and Dom standing next to each other. He grinned, though it was a cruel grin. “I think it’s best to get started on matters like this as early as possible, don’t you all agree?”

They all grumbled, but eventually made it down the little hill and by the edges of the disgusting water. Nines soon passed around long, silver trash reachers/grabbers to each of them, and they sighed as they used the long prongs for clipping and hooking onto the bags, and they pulled them as close to themselves as they could. Once they’d yanked up a few bags, they used knives to tear open through the closed bags, and they shorted through the trash carefully.

A few times, Gavin’s stomach lurched and churned, and he had to hide his face against his arm as he closed his eyes and trembled. He shivered, feeling so gross and disgusting just by being here, and Kelly soon wandered over to him and gently placed a comforting back on his back. It didn’t help much, and Gavin collected a few diabetic needles and threw them into a plastic container Nines had dumped onto the yellow grass behind him.

“Why the hell do we have to do this?!” Joe hissed somewhere over to the right in Dom’s ear, but the honey-hair-colored android merely pressed an index finger over his lips, indicating for Joe to remain silent and to keep on working.

“This isn’t what I volunteered for at all,” Phil sighed, not too far away from Kelly and Gavin. Nines was standing more than a yard away, and he merely scanned the rest of the garbage piles, his hands still firmly clasped behind his back.

Just seeing him there doing nothing made Gavin’s blood run cold. _“I’d like to see him get his hands dirty, for once.”_

Gavin finished with his pile, and he reached for his trash bag grabber device, but in the process, he stumbled forward, and his leg kicked out to support his body before he rolled down the small hill into the sludge below. As a result, he unfortunately kicked his grabber tool down into the disgusting water. It was lost in there with a small ‘splash’, which caught Nines’ attention. His head snapped over to the source of the sound, and when he saw Gavin’s trash grabber stick floating in the toxic waters, he growled.

Taking long, measured steps over to Gavin and Kelly, Nines hissed and snarled down into Gavin’s face viciously. “Are you _so terribly_ inept and disabled Detective, that you have to lose something that was immobile and inanimate into the waste below??”

Kelly winced, but turned around as she got back to her own pile of junk, a sad look upon her face the entire time. Even Joe, Phil, and Dom pretended like they weren’t able to see or hear what was going on, but Gavin knew they were still listening, as all their LED lights flashed yellow and stayed that way for a while.

Nines hadn’t waited for his response. “I suppose we both know the answer to that one, Detective Reed,” his resolute tone was so sharp that it cut Gavin’s ears and mind like a butcher’s knife.

“Tell me,” Nines pushed on, inching a little closer to Gavin, “did you kick the tool down into the sludge below on purpose to escape and shirk off your responsibilities, or are you just naturally this clumsy and stupid, Detective?”

That was it.

Unable to take another second of the verbal assault, Gavin stood up, and he yanked his mask and gloves off his hands and fingers. He rolled them into a small ball and threw them down angrily at Nines’ feet.

He took a step closer to Nines, though the android still loomed high above him, practically. As always, Nines had to be a bully, but this time, Gavin simply refused to be his victim. Enough was enough, finally.

“Fuck this,” Gavin hissed, “I’m done.”

He began marching back to the car, but he heard Nines crying out bitingly at his back, “What’s wrong, Detective Reed? Is the life of a narcotics team member not as glamorous for you as you’d once hoped it would be?”

“FUCK YOU!” Gavin yelled from the top of his lungs, happy that he’d found the car door to be unlocked. He got inside, slammed the door shut behind himself, and he started up the engine once he found the keys resting on the passenger seat.

It was time to get the fuck out of here.

As he pulled out of the parking lot, he saw Kelly trying to run over to him, but Nines stopped her by holding out a long, strong hand, and it rested against her stomach. She still gave Gavin a sad look, and the other androids all had red LED lights as they stood by and glared angrily at him.

 _“Fuck it,”_ Gavin thought to himself, still backing out as the tires of the car brought up dust, dirt, and gravel in smoke and clouds about the windows that barely made him able to see anything.

_“I can’t take this shit anymore, and I certainly won’t stick around and let Nines abuse me in front of everyone else. Fuck. That.”_

He drove away as fast as he could, heading straight for the mansion without another thought.

He could still see Nines’ cold blue eyes burning into his own, and he never stopped imagining those eyes, even when he reached home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well shit.  
> Gavin literally was SO close to asking Nines for a sexual aspect in their relationship earlier in the chapter!  
> Growth, my mans! (I legit can't help but feel that their 'alone times' in the secret room beneath their house helps bring them closer lmao). 
> 
> And eww for the work the narcotics team had to do! I don't think I'd even walk near that nastiness, let alone stare at it 🤢🤮


	26. Building Bridges

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow!! What can I honestly say?? Truthfully, I'm still mostly speechless, but I wanted to take some time before the chapter and personally thank a wonderfully talented reader by the username Chillqu33n. She brought it to my attention that she was so inspired by my story, that she drew a beautiful piece for it, which I'm featuring down below for this chapter!
> 
> I must say, I absolutely love the effort she put into this, and I think Gavin looks fantastic and adorable!!! You, my dear, are very talented, and I can't thank you enough!! 😊💖❤💞
> 
> I'm also linking her profile(s) down below because she gave me permission, and I would like everyone to enjoy the wonderful artwork and thank Chillqu33n if you want or can in the comments section!!! 
> 
> Much love to you, Chillqu33n, you are amazing to do this, and I hope my work inspires others to express themselves artistically as well! *HUGS!* 💖💖💕
> 
> https://www.deviantart.com/chillqu33n  
> https://sta.sh/0fa4gluhi2d

 

The front door suddenly slammed, followed by the deep rumbling of Nines’ voice as he screamed out almost at the top of his voice box, “You’re an arrogant fool, Detective!!!”

Gavin threw aside the book he’d been reading as he lay comfortably down on a soft couch in Nines’ large library located on the other side of the dining room. After having a warm, long shower, Gavin had paced around the main floor of the mansion, unsure of what to do until Nines came home, but he soon found the tightly shut dark brown doors that had opened up to a vast, huge library.

The ceiling was high and covered with beautiful indentations and plaster that wove around in elegant patterns. The walls were stocked up to the top with a lovely assortment of books-some in other languages, even-and Gavin had gotten lost in a few of them in no time. Magazines, journals, and even old newspapers had been stored in the library, and Gavin couldn’t believe that some of the journals and newspapers dated back to the late 1980s. He really got lost in what he discovered, but he was still so exhausted that he enjoyed a book while lying down on a comfortable dark couch. Shelley soon joined him, and she merely floated up and relaxed in a small round ball on top of Gavin’s stomach, much like his cat often would do in the past.

It was the closet he’d ever felt to home in a long time, and he let Shelley tuck in her two legs back inside her body as she rested on his stomach, and soon, Gavin found himself gently and softly stroking her head and body. He missed his cat; he missed his apartment…he missed his old life.

He’d fallen into the peaceful comfort of Shelley softly purring as she enjoyed the attention she was receiving. Sadly, it was all short-lived, and they both sprang up when Nines thundered inside the library with such force that Gavin thought the floorboards were going to cave into the tunnels below, sending them all down with it.

With their argument earlier from work still brewing freshly in his mind, Gavin snarled at Nines as he took a defensive stance while getting up stiffly. “I’m the fool, Nines?” he scoffed, “that’s rich!”

Cold blue eyes peered directly into his own. “You showed attitude today and were less than cooperative,” Nines pointed out, “need I remind you that I’m the team _leader_ ; your superior, and I directly oversee and coordinate all the activities on this team??”

“Doesn’t give you the right to bully me, god damn jackass!” Gavin snapped back, glaring away at Nines as though his life depended on it.

Shelley suddenly floated up to greet Nines, her eye opening as she let out a dull, low ‘boooop’ that sounded terribly off-key and painfully out of tune. “Good. Evening. Nines. How. May. I—”

Nines scowled at her, “Silence yourself, at once!”

She shrank down to the floor, letting out a defeated ‘beeeep’ before Gavin picked her up off the floor. He shoved Nines hard in the sternum with his shoulder. “Don’t talk to her like that!!”

Nines merely tossed him a cruel sneer. “Your loyalty to that machine is most touching, Detective,” he uttered sarcastically, “but need I remind you that it’s not a thing you should bond with and show an attachment to?”

Gavin stuck out his chin defiantly. “First of all,” he snapped while holding Shelley tightly to his chest, “ _she_ has a name; her name is ‘Shelley’, she’s not a _thing_ , and she’s _not_ a cold-blooded machine like—” that was when he caught himself, forcing his mouth to snap shut tightly. Shelley had apparently been fearing the same thing, and she rubbed her head against Gavin’s chest in a small warning.

Even though he hadn’t finished his sentence, the rest of it hung in the air like a horrible smell. Its implications drifted between Nines and Gavin, and the other male knew he didn’t even need to say it for the meaning to be felt.

 _“She’s not a cold-blooded machine like you…”_ His brain kept repeating it over and over to him, and Nines seemed to be hearing it, somehow. He glared heatedly at Gavin in silence for minutes on end before he took a step back and scowled even harder and deeper.

Gavin sniffed in anger, nostrils flaring, and he then felt his mind reeling. Nines reeked of the same putrid stench in the garbage dumps and landfill they’d been in, and Gavin wanted nothing more than to be rid of that smell. It’d taken him quite a long time to get it off his own body and clothes as he threw them into a large, black washing machine in the laundry room, and now Nines was standing right before him smelling exactly like the very thing he didn’t need to smell right now…or ever, for that matter.

He wrinkled his nose at Nines, but was mindful of the tone of his voice, and the volume of it as he selected his words wisely. “You should head for a shower or a bath, Nines,” he suggested, clutching onto Shelley tightly, “I bet you don’t feel so hot in those smelly clothes right now.”

Nines sighed as he took another step backwards. “When I return,” he started, a little too quietly for Gavin’s ears, but the other man heard him anyway, “we’re going to see what the matter with your… ‘Shelley’ happens to be.” Giving his husband a strange look, he tilted his head at Gavin, and then backed out of the room.

Gavin gasped softly, watching as Nines disappeared down the hall, his footsteps padding up the fancy stairs as he headed for the bathroom.

Gavin looked down at Shelley once they were alone, and he couldn’t help the large smile that formed on his face. Whispering down at her, he was more than happy to share this secret with her.

“I think he’s gonna improve a lot, Shelley,” Gavin gently whispered to her, “for once, he called you ‘Shelley’, and he didn’t even argue with me!!”

The Nano-Bot in his arms purred, as if confirming for Gavin that she too had noticed the change in Nines’ behavior, and was as happy and excited about it as he was.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

When Nines joined Gavin back in the library after his shower, Gavin nearly fell apart upon looking at Nines. The tall, well-built android was wearing a white t-shirt and black jogging track pants, but he looked absolutely refreshing and delectable. This was by far the most ‘casual’ outfit Gavin had seen his husband in yet, and Gavin thought he could get used to the sight right away.

Nines’ torso was still a bit wet, and his t-shirt stuck nicely to his chest and abdomen, revealing a few abs Gavin had never really taken a good look at due to the fact that Nines wore heavy, dark, and many layers of clothing oftentimes. What he was wearing now seemed like a direct contrast, and as Nines moved about the library, Gavin’s eyes followed his form appreciatively.

After a moment, Gavin nearly fainted. _“Wait…why the fuck am I checking him out like he’s some hottie I want to spend a night or two with?!?!? The hell is wrong with me!?!?”_

Again, Gavin had to consider that he was only reacting this way because he had yet to even sleep with a man. He hated to be so crass, but he hadn’t even masturbated since he found out he had to get married to Nines. It was a clear case as to why he hadn’t lavished that kind of attention unto himself as well; Gavin Reed simply didn’t handle stress too well, and he was sure that his body was merely reacting badly to the stress. Perhaps that was why he was so overly sexual lately, and he knew he didn’t mean to be.

He was positive that even if a random guy off the street walked into the mansion looking as fine as the android standing before him, he would react the same way…at least…he really hoped so.

Shelley whirred about Nines’ legs as he wandered around aimlessly, trying to avoid Gavin as much as he could until he knew he had no other choice. He couldn’t walk around carelessly all evening, so he eventually made his way over to the black leather couch Gavin was sitting on, and he placed himself at least one seat’s space away from Gavin’s body. Gavin didn’t care much; he was too busy staring at Shelley as she hovered before his feet, staring back and forth at him and then at Nines. She was obviously waiting for them to say or do something, and Gavin was motivated now to at least broach the subject.

He turned to Nines, and froze when he was met with a nasty scowl.

 _“Holy smokes, doesn’t he know how to do anything else???”_ Gavin swallowed nervously, and he merely stuttered out, “S-s-so…”

“How good of you to show blatant disobedience and disrespect towards me earlier today, Detective,” Nines growled deeply as he sat back in his spot.

_“So we’re back on that topic again, huh?”_

Gavin sighed. There it was; that stupid snarky attitude once again. It truly ruined the mood, and it weighed heavily on his shoulders as he stared over at Nines and tried to ignore his angry looks. “Nines, please,” he begged, but then had no idea what he was begging for. What did he want to say exactly? Gavin wasn’t sure, but he was amazed that Nines stopped talking and merely gave him enough time to continue with his thoughts and words.

After some time, Gavin pushed out, “I just…I just didn’t want to spend the entire afternoon rolling around in other people’s trash, Nines.”

The dour android merely scoffed dismissively, “It doesn’t matter what you want, Detective Reed,” he crossed his ankles, his long legs stretching out before him on the floor. “Surely you should understand that oftentimes, the job entails things you wouldn’t normally want to do, but since it is required of you to do, you must obey.”

Gavin rolled his eyes, “I know _that,_ ” he snapped shortly, his temper about to shoot up again in such a short span of time, “but I just couldn’t take it today, please try to understand me!”

“I only understand that you’re defiant, recalcitrant, immature, disobedient, childish, petulant, obnoxious, and troublesome, Detective Reed,” Nines hissed softly while Shelley floated up a little, keeping a close watch on them.

Sighing, Nines’ shoulders caved in a little. He had Gavin’s undivided attention, and as the other man listened carefully, Nines shook his head and grumbled, “Although you annoy me to no end, I understand that how I treated you was absolutely uncalled for and disrespectful.”

Gavin’s jaw nearly fell down to the floor. “Nines…” he coughed, and then composed himself to the best of his abilities. “Nines! Did you just a-apologize to me??”

Staring up at him slowly, the android stared to the side for a moment, and then finally gazed back at Gavin. “Consider it an admission of my poor behavior displayed earlier; nothing more.”

“Nooo,” Gavin wasn’t letting it go easily, “you _so_ just apologized to me!!”

He was met with a small glare, and a red LED light. “I still think you’re an obstinate child, Detective,” Nines hissed, though it seemed to lack so much more venom now, “I’m still very angry with you!”

Gavin giggled, for some reason unaffected by what Nines had thrown his way in terms of insults. Perhaps the relaxation had helped him a great deal; he wasn’t interested in arguing with Nines or throwing expletives back and forth across the room, and he merely stretched as he yawned.

“Whatever you say, Nines!”

“Hmmff!” Nines scoffed, and then stared down angrily at Shelley. “Now, what’s the matter with her?”

Gavin sighed, deciding to cut right to the chase. “She doesn’t always understand what I’m talking about, and she is confused whenever I try to just talk to her.”

A delicate light brown eyebrow rose on Nines’ forehead. “You want to talk to her?” he hummed, and then stared at Shelley, “talk about what?”

Shrugging, Gavin scratched his neck. “About basic things, Nines; like if she were a friend or somethin’!”

“She’s not a human being, Detective,” Nines snarled, “what did you expect from her?”

What had he been expecting, indeed? Even Gavin wasn’t sure how to phrase it, but he shrugged as he nervously scratched the back of his head a few times. “Can’t you ‘update’ her or somethin’?” It sounded so stupid the way he’d said it, but Nines seemed to catch on quickly.

He nodded as he turned and knelt down before Shelley. “It’s rather simple, Detective,” he stated plainly as he sat down on the floor in front of Shelley while she curiously tilted her head at him. Nines motioned for Gavin to pay attention. He rested a hand right on the tiny square compartment located in Shelley’s back, and he poked at it with an index finger a few times.

“As you can see here, Detective,” he began in a formal tone, “there’s a button here that acts almost like a ‘reset’ feature, though it won’t affect her processes and memories stored up to this point.”

Gavin shifted himself off the sofa, and he sat down beside Nines on the floor cross legged as he stared at the little compartment in Shelley’s back. A light above it blinked off a few times, and it was still green.

“Press it yourself,” Nines suggested, moving his hand back and allowing Gavin’s finger to rest upon it. There was a very tiny, minuscule button there for sure, and Gavin pushed down on the circular thing. He watched as Shelley’s eye closed slowly, and her head tilted down inwards.

“Three. Two. One. System. Restart. System. Restart.”

Beeeeeeeeeeeeeep!!!!

“Are you sure nothing’s gonna happen to her memories?” Gavin asked while worrying about Shelley.

Nines nodded his head, “Yes, just hold on to the button for another second here, and then release it slowly.”

Gavin did as he was told to do, and he watched as Shelley’s blue light turned on once again, and her little ears curved up next. She faced Gavin, and Nines moved out of the way. Frowning in confusion, Gavin moved to do the same, but Nines gently pushed him back towards Shelley.

“What’re you doin’??” Gavin asked, slightly panicked, but stayed in place when Nines held onto his shoulders and kept him from moving to the side.

“You need to be the first person she sees when she reboots,” Nines explained in a soft and lazy drawl, “that’s how she will answer to your requests more, and she’ll imprint on you.”

Gavin gasped, “That’s really neat, Nines!”

Beeeeeeeeep!! “Welcome. Welcome!” Shelley scanned him once she had full rebooted, and her head moved around in a small circle as she gazed at him with her single eye.

“I hope she remembers me…” Gavin whispered this hopeful thought, and Nines stayed silent.

Boooooop!!! Beeeeeeeep! “Good. Evening. Detective Reed. How. May. I. Assist. You?”

Gavin mentally cheered. Shelley had indeed recognized him, and it appeared that she was fine after her reboot. Looking over at Nines, Gavin waited for the next set of instructions.

Nines whispered into his ear, “Just say this word, and she will automatically know that she needs to input and process new information…” he smirked, “the code word is ‘anathema’.”

Gavin threw Nines a dirty look. “Of course _you_ would select such a nasty-ass word for her.”

Nines merely shrugged, “It’s not a word many would be able to figure out as a ‘password’ of sorts.”

Shaking his head and rolling his eyes, Gavin said the word clearly as he could, “Anathema.”

At once, Shelley’s neck stretched up, and she fully faced him, giving him her complete and undivided attention. She was waiting for more information and further instructions, and Gavin looked over quickly at Nines once again.

“Now you teach her new words-if you wish, but talk to her as though you are really her friend,” Nines stated with a small half-smile. “Tell her a bit about yourself, your background, tell her stories, if you will, and she will process them on her own and shift her behavior patterns according to the information you feed her.”

Smiling at him, Gavin nodded before looking over at Shelley once again. “Empathy,” he spoke out calmly, “I want us to be friendly as we share empathy for one another, Shelley…”

Beeeeeeeep! “Noted. Empathy. Friendship. Companionship. Thank-you. Detective. Reed!” She even sounded a lot happier, and her words held plenty of emotional overtones to them. It was refreshing, and Gavin smiled at Nines.

“Thank you, Nines!” he said with utmost gratitude, “I can hopefully talk to her more closely and like a friend this way, at least.”

Nines nodded, “Indeed, though try not to overwhelm her with too much information at once, as she just restarted her functions and features.”

Gavin smiled widely, “I won’t, don’t worry!”

Nines moved back up on the sofa, and the moment he sat himself down on it, a gentle breeze blew in through the open library windows. It surrounded Nines since his back was directly facing the windows, and his fresh, clean scent hit Gavin’s nostrils. Nines smelled like an assortment of old spices, cinnamon, mint, and a hint of chocolate, and it immediately sent shivers down Gavin’s spine.

He tried containing and composing himself as he told Shelley about his cat, but the longer Nines hung around, the worse it became. He smelled absolutely radiant and ravishing, and Gavin’s body began getting ahead of itself by reacting to the sensual smells. Gavin shifted uncomfortably on the floor, trying to hold his bodily reactions down, but it was no use. He was fully erect within two minutes, and he decided instead to try and hold his breath before breathing slowly through his mouth. He needed to avoid the sensual smell Nines was giving off, but it was impossible. He soon began panting as he breathed heavily through his mouth, and Nines leaned over and stared at him.

“Whatever is the matter, Detective?” his gentle voice reached out and almost caressed Gavin’s body.

And did Gavin’s body ever react. The moment he’d heard how softly Nines had spoken to him, his flesh heated up, and his body hair stood on end. Goosebumps rose up and down on his skin, and Gavin felt his throat constricting and then going dry. He couldn’t even swallow, though he tried as he struggled to remain in control of his faculties.

Shaking his head, Gavin got up to his feet quickly. He had to get the hell out of the room, and as far away from Nines as possible, just until he figured out what the fuck was going on.

Scrambling for words, Gavin crossed one leg over the other as he backed away towards the doors. “I’m f-fine, Nines,” he lied, “I just need to go see Connor and Hank for a while; they wanted to tell me something important about Red Ice, a-and I forgot about it, otherwise I would have seen them at work…”

This earned him a sneer from Nines, “You mean you would have seen them at work had you not stormed out early today?”

Gavin nodded and laughed painfully, “Umm, yeah, haha, th-that’s acceptable, too…”

He’d almost turned around when he remembered something very important.

“I hope I’m not buggin’ you by asking you this, Nines,” Gavin began nervously while Shelley conjured up images and photos of people playing with cats and kittens, “but I don’t suppose you have a spare key lyin’ around?”

Of course, he’d been expecting a solid ‘no’, however, Nines merely extended a hand out the library door. “There’s one in my office, Detective,” he mused with a small grin, “I store it right beneath the small Buddha statue on the right-hand corner of my desk.”

“So I can—”

“That’ll be your key from now on,” Nines stated while cocking his head to the side as his eyes swept over Gavin once, “keep it with you, and you’re welcome to come and go as you please, as long as I know where you are…for safety reasons, as I’m sure you understand?” He finished that sentence with a small purr at Gavin, and the other male nearly fainted.

_“I get my own key?!? I can come and go as I want??! Is this the same Nines?!?!?!”_

Feeling lightheaded suddenly, Gavin took a few steps back, nearly tripping over his own feet in the process. “Thank you—”

“No thanking is necessary, Detective Reed.”

The room felt so much smaller, the air felt warmer, and Gavin’s clothes felt tighter, especially around the crotch area of his pants.

Nines eyed him carefully, a look of suspicion clear upon his face, but then he sighed as he leaned back on the sofa, clearly trying to get comfortable. “Very well, Detective,” he grumbled out under his breath, “make sure to lock the front door after yourself; you failed to do it last time.”

“R-right!” Gavin nodded, backing away out of the library slowly, “I’ll remember that!”

“Go, you silly Detective,” his husband growled-though this time, it didn’t seem as vicious and cruel as it had sounded in the past…in fact, it even sounded… _playful_ …

Oh, how Gavin hoped his mind was just playing tricks on him. After all, it couldn’t be that Nines was actually _amused_ , was he??

Shuffling backwards, Gavin couldn’t get out of the house sooner, and he was already calling up both Connor and Hank to let them know he would indeed be dropping by. He was so grateful they were just as eager to see him, and he called up a taxi immediately, not wanting to steal Nines’ car more than he already had that day.

At least he could afford Nines the same courtesy he’d shown him when he helped him with Shelley.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin sat down on Hank Anderson’s living room couch while the Lieutenant fetched him a glass of cold water. His pet Saint Bernard, Sumo, was panting and trying to lick Gavin’s face desperately, but Gavin held him back with a strong hand while Connor bustled around the kitchen, whistling a strange tune. Hank had been watching something on the television, but when he guffawed loudly across the living room, Connor ordered him to turn off his program and shows. Obeying him, Hank just shook his head mutely.

They all seemed so lively and happy, but Gavin was a mess on the inside. What was he to tell his friends?!?! He hadn’t a clue about what the first word would be, let alone the whole situation!! He leaned his head back against the top of the sofa, staring at the ceiling as the entire living room spun like a crazy pinwheel.

He groaned one more time when Hank sat down on a single seat beside him and handed over the water. “Alright, Reed,” he groused, clearly in a bit of a bad mood, “wanna just talk instead of growling away at me like a bear?”

“Hank! That’s not the nicest way to get Gavin talking!” Connor warned, walking into the living room as well, and pausing to tap on the tip of Hank’s nose scornfully. Hank batted his finger away, moving to go sit back in his original seat across the room as he clapped his hands and whistled.

“Yo! Sumo!”

The large dog panted as he got up and leapt off the sofa away from Gavin.

“C’mere!” Hank waved him over with a hand.

Listening to his best friend and owner, Sumo bounded over to Hank, and he curled up at his feet while Hank leaned down and played with his large ears.

Connor sat beside Gavin and he crossed a leg over the other while flashing Gavin a friendly smile. “Take your time, Gavin,” he stated kindly, “and whenever you’re ready, Hank and I will listen…” he paused, throwing a scowl at Hank, “…and we will listen _without_ bias getting in the way, right Hank?”

“You—”

“So glad you agree.” Sitting back smugly, Connor toyed with the TV remote control, and Hank rolled his eyes as he placed a hand beneath his chin and studied Gavin with tired, baggy eyes.

Gavin nodded, “Errr…right…” again, where the fuck was he to start?!?!? He couldn’t just say: ‘hey guys! I think I’m having feelings for Nines! You know? The same android I used to walk around swearing at all day long in the DPD who’s now my damn husband?? Yeah, I think I have a huuuuuge crush on him! What do I do??’

Gavin was certain they would both not only laugh at him, but also remind him that while he himself was obviously gay, Nines more than likely wasn’t, and _never_ would be!! Why would he even open that can of worms to begin with??? It was pointless!!!

Still, he was suffering, and his heart couldn’t take not venting to _someone_ , at least.

It wasn’t long before the words were already spilling from his mouth, and there wasn’t much Gavin could do to stop them.

“Wh-what if you f-found out that you w-w-were possibly developin’ f-f-feelings for someone you u-u-used to hate?”

 _“There! I said it! I said it!!! ARE YOU BOTH HAPPY NOW?!?!?!”_ He hid his face in his hands, not wanting to ever look up at either of them, but he soon felt Connor’s hands on his back, and he heard Sumo whining.

He peeked through the spaces between his fingers, but he was unable to see clearly. Finally, he removed his hands from around his face, and he was met with the sight of Hank Anderson with a wide-eyed expression and a wide-open mouth, and when he turned to Connor, he also saw evidence of shock in his eyes, but the RK800 was better at masking his emotions.

“I’m assuming you’re referring to Nines, right Gavin?” Connor gently asked, his tone soft and soothing-completely free of any judgement or traces of bias.

Hearing that he wasn’t judging him at all, Gavin felt a bit more relaxed. He placed his sweaty hands on his knees, and he nodded sadly down at the floor. “Yeah…I don’t know why, but I think I’m attracted to him…”

…………….

“What the fu—”

“HAAAAAAAANK!” Connor screamed suddenly, making both the older Lieutenant jump up in his seat, and Sumo yelp before he scampered and hid beneath the kitchen table.

“You big sissy!” Hank screamed after him, but then cleared his throat and blushed as he struggled to look at Gavin. “I’m sorry about that, Reed,” he said calmly, “but I don’t think that’s an issue, right?”

Gavin groaned, “How the fuck is it _not_ an issue, Hank?!”

“Well Jesus Christ on a bicycle, Reed,” Hank snorted as he frowned deeply, “it’s not the end of the world to find out you have feelings for your own husband!! Sheeeesh!!”

Connor shook his head and sighed wearily. “I don’t think Gavin is here for our approval, Hank; he’s here to discuss how he feels, and I think we need to listen very carefully.”

Gavin offered Connor a weak smile. “Thank you, Connor,” he glared at Hank, “I’m happy at least _one_ of you seems to get it.”

Grabbing his water for him, Connor handed it to him while smiling warmly. “Why don’t you start by telling us what drew you to think you are developing feelings for Nines?”

This was one of the most loaded questions. There were many reasons Gavin had right off the bat, and he sipped his water, his mouth suddenly dry.

“Well,” he set the glass down on the coffee table before him, “in spite of us arguing a lot—” he ignored the snort that came from Hank, “—Nines was really kind to me today after work…” he couldn’t keep the smile off his face as he explained it all to them.

“Today, he helped me with Shelley-our Nano-Bot, and he used to refer to her as a machine before, but since I asked him to stop, it’s like…I dunno…it’s like he just listened to me right away without much of a fuss, and he seemed so good with her; so relaxed, so calm, and he was smiling a lot…” Gavin leaned back and folded his hands in his lap. “I don’t know what to do,” he began in a slightly pained tone of voice, “I know I got married to him strictly for ‘business’, but what if I don’t want it to be that way always?”

Connor smiled and merely offered Gavin his hand. Taking it in his own, Gavin relaxed more when he felt Connor’s fingers stroking his own. It felt so nice, gentle, and soothing.

“Gavin, I can understand how you feel,” Connor began warmly and empathetically while Hank rolled his eyes at them both. “It’s also common knowledge that whenever you spend time around another person, you’re more than likely to develop strong feelings for them, so it’s nothing to be that surprised about.”

Gavin nodded, “Yeah, I know that, Connor,” he looked over at Hank sadly, “but I don’t think Nines would _ever_ feel the same way about me! For all I know, he’s probably just counting down the days, seconds, and minutes until the Ouroboros case is complete and so he can be free of me!!”

Slapping a hand down on his thigh, Hank sat back while shaking his head. “You don’t know that for certain, Reed,” he said as he closed his eyes and thought about it for a moment. “For all you know, perhaps Nines is just as confused as you are.”

“I’m not confused!” Gavin cried out in anguish, but then looked to the side, “…at least…I don’t think I am…?”

Connor gave him a friendly smile. “You don’t even know how you feel yourself, Gavin,” he stated factually, “I think it’s best to just enjoy the interactions you share with Nines, and try to learn more about him as an individual instead of rushing to push for a relationship with him.”

Hank held up a finger, “That’s true! I was best friends with my wife for years before we got married!”

Gavin shook his head sadly. “It’s not the same, guys,” he sighed as he grabbed his water, staring at the dew and fog that had formed on the glass as he breathed down against it. “In my case, it’s all backwards…I got married before I even got the chance to know Nines, and now I don’t know what the hell I’m feeling anymore!”

It was silent, and he drank his water, not knowing what else to say and do. The kitchen clock ticked loudly like a beating drum, and Sumo was grooming himself before he let out a soft yawn. Hank seemed a little confused by everything that had gone on, however, he seemed to be smiling a lot more now in comparison to before. It helped set a better mood and atmosphere, and Gavin felt himself relaxing just by watching as Hank smiled.

“It’ll be okay, Reed,” Hank’s reassuring comment nearly went unheard by Gavin, but when his ears caught onto it at the last minute, the detective gasped. When Hank gave him a confident nod, those words he’d spoken had been confirmed, and Gavin nodded back as his cheeks turned red.

Connor finally leaned into Gavin, and he smiled with pride as he grabbed the now-empty glass of water and set it down once again.

A twinkle was in his eyes, and if Gavin didn’t know Connor any better, he would’ve sworn that a mischievous thought was brewing in his friend’s mind.

“You say you didn’t get the chance to know Nines before, right Gavin?” Connor asked, not waiting for Gavin to answer. He continued, holding onto Gavin’s shoulder, and giving him a firm shake.

“Then I say seize the opportunity _now;_ get to know him.”

It had been a statement Gavin couldn’t comment against, and as he looked over at Hank, he saw the exact same twinkle in the older male’s eyes, before a wide smile formed on his face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just love supportive Hank and Connor! They're the best friends Gavin could have!!!  
> Huge progress, though!! Gavin basically is feeling more comfortable with admitting to friends that he has feelings for Nines!  
> HOLY SHOOT! 👀👀👀👀  
> And yes, Nines was legit being nice and not a cold twat for once! I think Shelley brings out the softer side of Nines! 💕💕💕💖


	27. Accidental Opportunity

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please, please, PLEEEEAAASSSEEE don't get mad at me because of this chapter! I beg you! I implore you! 😥😥😥😥😫😫😫😓😓  
> *Hides away just in case* 👀👀👀👀😪

Gavin was beyond starved. It was already half-past seven, and he didn’t want to go back home just yet, but he was also very, very hungry.

He’d tried ignoring the demands of his stomach when he’d stepped out of Hank’s house and simply tried enjoying the cool night air. The neighborhood was so calm and quiet. The sky was vast and exceptionally beautiful that night. There were lovely, scintillating starts beaming down at him while a full, round moon peeked at him between a small group of soft grey clouds. It reminded Gavin a lot of the cool, crisp nights he’d spent outdoors when camping with his father at a young age.

Another rumble from his stomach broke him out of his soothing thoughts, and he quickly peered over his shoulder at Hank’s house. The lights were all off, and the only light source came from his TV in the living room as he no doubt sat with Connor watching a late-night show.

Earlier, Connor and Hank had made sure to let Nines know that Gavin had indeed dropped by when the concerned RK900 connected with Connor. He hadn’t been too furious as Gavin feared he would be, and when he spoke to both Hank and Connor, he calmed down significantly and merely wished for them all to have a ‘good time’. Before their conversation ended, Gavin had asked them to also let Nines know that he was going to be grabbing some fast food later, right before he came back home for the night. Nines didn’t say much else, and Gavin didn’t feel ready to talk to him for now, so he merely stood outside Hank’s house while debating whether to call for a cab as his stomach growled and grumbled like a beast.

Except…he had no idea where he even wanted to go.

He had plenty of food at home; food wasn’t the main issue at all. The main issue was that he was scared to be left alone with Nines for a while, as he hadn’t sorted his feelings out just yet. He knew that he was physically attracted to Nines; that wasn’t something unknown to him. What bothered Gavin was that this wasn’t just a simple case of sheer sexual attraction. He’d felt raw lust and sexual attraction for men briefly in the past, and he knew this was different because his thoughts and desires surrounding Nines extended and went beyond anything sexual.

Ever since Nines had talked to him more and helped him with Shelley, the feelings Gavin felt for Nines went beyond anything carnal and physical, and they were starting to blossom emotionally and psychologically. Nines often was at the forefront of Gavin’s mind even when the detective didn’t know it at first.

He hated that!! Why did Nines had to go and show that he had such a soft, kind side to him?!?! Why couldn’t he just remain heartless, cold, taciturn, rude, and a big jerk like he had been before!!!!!

Gavin wanted to scream and kick about in anger. It wasn’t fair at all. None of this was fair.

He’d just recently been okay with his own sexuality, and then he had to come out to his parents-albeit, in the worst and most embarrassing way-and just when things had settled a little internally, he had to go and develop feelings for the one person he was sure he could never have… _and_ that individual happened to also be his ‘superior’ of sorts…

_“Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck myyyyyyyyy liiiiiiiiiiiifeeeeeee!!!!!!”_

He tugged at his hair, willing himself not to scream out into the evening sky. The last thing he needed was more attention.

While he was suffering internally, Gavin’s rational side and reasoning powers kicked in, and he soon reminded himself that even if he wanted Nines more than he’d ever wanted another man-which at this point he was quite certain he did-it was never going to work out.

No matter how Gavin looked at it, the odds were against this even blossoming further into a full-fledged relationship. He was probably reading too much into things, and just because Nines had helped him with Shelley, seemed a little more protective over him, looked good, smelled good, was beyond intelligent, supremely talented, and offered Gavin to support whatever he needed, didn’t at all imply Nines even held one tenth of the same feelings for Gavin!!

Gavin nodded his head, as if agreeing with all these ‘thoughts’. _“It’s his damn JOB to protect me and watch out for me,”_ he entertained this in his mind as a gentle breeze blew by, though it didn’t seem to calm him down or soothe the growing tension in his back and neck. _“He can’t even look at me that way!!”_

As Gavin nervously paced about, he dug his hands in his jean pockets, and his right hand suddenly hit a small, solid object buried within the pocket. It was the key Nines had allowed him to retrieve from his office…Gavin clutched it almost desperately before fishing it out of his pocket and staring directly at it. It gleamed and shined beneath the streetlights, and Gavin sighed.

He felt so relieved staring at it, and he didn’t understand how a tiny object could bring him so much comfort suddenly. Gavin smiled down at the key resting in the palm of his hand, and a goofy smile was upon his face. _“But he gave me this key…that means something!! That means he doesn’t mind that I’m a part of his life, welcome in his house…”_

Somewhere in the distance, an ambulance siren went off for a moment, and it snapped Gavin out of his serene thoughts.

What was he even doing!? What trap or spell was he under??? This was _NINES!!_ His cold-as-snow superior!! There was no way in all of Detroit that Nines returned _any_ of his feelings, and falling into a fantasy of his own doing and creation was just ridiculous!

Gavin resisted the urge to slap himself as he pocketed the key once more.

 _“First of all, he’s probably not even gay!”_ This was a major issue in and of itself, and Gavin didn’t want to ask Nines about his sexuality, much less wait until the android either pursued another relationship with someone else or otherwise. No, that would hurt him more than a bullet to the heart.

There was also the pressing matter regarding the fact that according to the DPD policies and procedures, Nines and Gavin wouldn’t ever be allowed to have a relationship so long as they both worked for the same precinct. This was a huge area of a contention, as Gavin loved his job! He lived, breathed, ate, slept and WAS his job! How was he supposed to just give it up?? It didn’t seem worth the trouble, and even if-for some weird reason and miracle-he had been allowed to pursue something with Nines, what would become of their workplace relationship if they broke up??

It would just be even more awkward than it already was, and Gavin was positive they would argue and bicker more than they already did. No fucking thank you. There was a good reason why workplace relationships were frowned up, he supposed, and this was a solid case against pursing anything with Nines.

_“………..But I still want him….”_

Gavin nearly fell down to the curb, anxiety overtaking him as he felt a headache throbbing and forming in the back of his head. Why did his life always have to be so freaking complicated?!

Other people developed crushes and romantic feelings, too! But they didn’t typically fall for highly incompatible, combative, annoying, ruthless, sexy, tall, handsome, daring, enchanting androids with a keen knowledge and interest in the arts, classical music, history, and who spoke with a wide range of vocabulary Gavin had never heard before outside of a British movie…

He threw his head back when he realized what the fuck he’d been thinking and where his thoughts had taken him, and he screamed.

Th neighborhood seemed to quiet down even more when he’d yelled, and he was positive even the crickets stopped chirping upon hearing the ruckus he was making.

Luckily, he wasn’t able to scream longer or louder; he actually had a good idea of how he could deal with this, and he knew where he could also get some food. More importantly, he really needed someone else to talk to. It’d been a great relief and a huge burden off his chest by discussing matters with Hank and Connor, but something still was lacking…sure, his friends had wonderful advice, but they knew him too well, and it was likely that they held some bias so they wouldn’t hurt his feelings!! No, he needed to talk to someone who was more removed from the situation and who held a different perspective!

Digging his hands into his sweater pocket, Gavin pulled out his phone and immediately opened up his Facebook messenger app.

**Gavin R: what r u doin now?**

It was hardly a few minutes before Raoul replied.

**Raoul: not much, y?**

**Gavin R: wanna get something to eat?**

**Raoul: thought ud never ask, Reed lol**

**Gavin R: its not just that im hungry… need 2 talk.**

**Raoul: told u im always here 4 u.**

**Gavin R: thnx, i really need some advice! Freakin out!**

**Raoul: where r u?**

Gavin smiled as he texted out the address, and Raoul told him he would be there to pick him up in less than ten minutes.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin hadn’t been expecting Raoul’s son Paul to also be in the red minivan when Raoul honked at him and waved at him to get in the passenger seat. The moment Gavin opened the door, he saw Paul flashing him a small smile, and he waved awkwardly.

“H-hey kiddo.”

“Hi!” Paul swung his feet about, his seat belt loosely done as the car headed to the right and exited Hank and Connor’s street. A few seconds went by, and then Paul let out a small series of coughs, as if he had something stuck in his throat. It made Gavin nervous and slightly panicked to hear, but when Raoul turned around in his seat and stared at Paul, the young boy breathed in deeply, and he shook his head as he smiled weakly at his father.

“I’m fine, dad!” he assured Raoul, but the older male merely frowned for a split second before he threw Gavin a tiny smirk that lacked a lot of self-confidence and charm.

The night was settling in relatively quickly, and the street lights and traffic lights showed off Raoul’s fancy blue long-sleeved dress shirt and black jeans with little tears in the leggings. He’d even gone the extra mile of putting on fancy and good-smelling deodorant, and it made Gavin feel a little uneasy as he held his hand up to his nose and tried hiding the fact that he was enjoying smelling Raoul.

Paul whistled in the back, turning around as he stared out the backseat windows. Every so often, he would let out a small wheeze and a tiny cough, but he luckily didn’t go into a full-blown coughing fit as he had previously. The young boy suddenly had enough energy to even kneel up in his seat, counting the lights from other cars and street lamps as he knelt on his kneecaps.

Raoul saw him in the rear view mirror and snapped at him, “Hey! Sit down, Paul! We’re not even close to home, yet!”

His son obeyed him, but didn’t say much else as he pulled out a large tablet that had been sitting next to him, and he played a little game while his father drove down a few more streets. It was all silent-the only sounds coming from Paul’s game-when Raoul turned his neck to the right and threw Gavin a soft smile. Gavin felt himself about to blush, so he merely looked out his side of the window instead. At least the bright lights were lovely to look at…

“It’s good to see you,” Raoul warmly said, looking back at the road as he slowed the car down when the traffic lights turned yellow.

Gavin hummed, “Right back at ya, Spencer.”

Raoul snickered, but then leaned back as he straightened his shoulders a little. “Please, Gavin,” he said in a soft tone that begged for Gavin’s attention, “just call me ‘Raoul’.”

“Okay…Raoul…” Gavin winced at himself for how he’d practically cooed Raoul’s name out the way he had. What was wrong with him!?!? Just because Raoul smelled nice and looked nice, didn’t mean he could act like such a hussy!!! He needed to get himself together, so he shook his head and took in a deep breath.

The car still hadn’t moved, and it’d been at least a minute…Gavin looked over at Raoul while the lights from Paul’s game bounced around in the backseat of the van. When Gavin turned to face Raoul, he nearly swallowed his tongue whole.

Raoul was staring at him with a dreamy look in his eyes, and his sights had been fixated on Gavin’s lips. Lust practically dripped out of Raoul, and it made Gavin feel a little tense. He was unable to turn away, but he pressed the button to roll down the passenger window of the car, and he felt immediate relief when the cool night air hit his cheeks.

Up ahead, the traffic lights turned green, but Raoul still hadn’t started driving.

“Umm,” Gavin cleared his throat, “the light’s green, Raoul…”

Even Paul looked up from his game, and he pointed at the lights. “Dad, go!!”

Raoul chuckled, but removed his foot off the brake pedal. Once he’d pressed down gently on the gas pedal, the car moved again, and Gavin’s stomach and chest lurched and heaved forwards and backwards, up and down. It reminded Gavin of the time he’d first gotten on an airplane with his parents, and remembering how queasy and sick it’d made him back then, he held a hand to his stomach as he took in mouthfuls of fresh night air.

The car drove on down a straight path for six minutes before Raoul spoke up again. “Sorry about surprising you with Paul,” he chuckled as he stared at his son for a second, “his mother had to step out of town for a while, and I was the only available babysitter she could trust, I guess.”

Gavin nodded, “Oh…it’s fine…”

Tossing him a playful wink, Raoul came up to the end of the road, and he slowed the minivan down as he turned on his left signal blinker. “I just didn’t want you to think I was abducting you, and single guys always look far less intimidating when they have a kid with ‘em, huh?”

Gavin laughed nervously, but he didn’t feel threatened or frightened by Raoul’s words. The man was merely flirting awkwardly with him, but Gavin’s mind was far too swamped with other things to understand why this was happening. Plus, his stomach burned and ached for food, and his mouth practically watered with thoughts of delicious meals awaiting him. Perhaps later he would ponder on why Raoul’s words were a tad creepy for his tastes…

Raoul pulled up to a medium-sized house, and parked the car in the driveway. His house wasn’t as fancy as Nines’ mansion, of course, but it was still pretty good for a single dad and a recently-divorced single dad, to boot.

The house was two levels, and most of the lights were already lit up inside, as well as having luminescent motion sensor lights installed in the front yard that went on as soon as Paul opened the side door and practically flew out of the car.

There weren’t too many decorations about the place, but Gavin assumed that it was because Raoul had recently moved into the house, if he was assuming correctly. Raoul opened the front door-which was a light brown color-and he held open the door for Gavin while Paul pushed forward, already heading up the stairs eagerly.

“Hey!! We don’t run around in the house like that, Paul!” Raoul called after him before sighing wearily.

Ignoring his father, Paul’s little footsteps thundered about upstairs, but Gavin paid him no attention as he stood awkwardly in the front hall. The interior of the house lacked much furniture, but it had the bare essentials and was rather tidy and neat. Inside the main-floor closet, only two jackets were hanging, and on the shoe rack, a set of Paul’s little running shoes were propped next to his father’s black running shoes, and then a pair of older sports shoes sat beside those ones.

A little bench rested against the wall opposite to the closet, but other than that, the hallway was empty. It was cramped and slightly small for Gavin’s tastes, but he supposed that came from being spoiled with having lived in Nines’ spacious mansion.

“What do you want for supper, Gavin?” Raoul asked once he took Gavin’s sweater and hung it up on a spare hanger in the closet neatly.

Gavin merely shrugged and said the first thing that came to his mind. “How about chicken-burgers and a couple of beers?”

Raoul flashed him a toothy grin, “Barbeque’s on, buddy.”

Not wanting to be rude, Gavin followed Raoul into the kitchen, ready to begin helping him with the meal preparations. The kitchen was tiny, but it was homey. A few picture frames hung from the walls bearing Raoul’s and Paul’s images-all smiles for the camera. A little flat-screen TV sat on a mount close to the small kitchen table, and a few plastic containers filled to the brim with toys rested next to the TV.

Gavin walked around, taking in all the sights quietly, and as he made his way over to the fridge, he noticed the door had been littered from top-to-bottom with cartoon magnets and bright-colored letter magnets that held up drawings Paul had obviously done at school.

Gavin ran a finger along one of them, which was of a child with a slightly green-blue face holding onto his father’s hand. A few steps away from them, a tall, red-headed stick-figure female lingered behind with sad eyes. She was crying, as large, blue circles that were meant to be teardrops fell down from her face. Gavin frowned at the drawing, and he had to wonder why on earth Raoul would keep something like this up on his fridge. As he was lost in his thoughts, he felt a hand on his lower back, right above his coccyx.

Gavin lost it, then. He turned around and smashed his back into the fridge, leaping up in fright when he was face-to-face with Raoul. The man was so close to him, and he gasped in fear as his head knocked into the door of the fridge. It hurt like a bitch, and items within the fridge rattled wildly.

Raoul’s eyes widened, and he backed up a few steps as he held out his hands before Gavin and breathed out calmly. “Woah, woah, Gavin!! I didn’t mean to scare you, man!”

Gavin clutched desperately at his chest, feeling his heart racing a mile a minute as he backed up even more, even though he had no more room to back up. “What’re you doin’?!?”

Raoul eyed him incredulously, “I was just trying to get the items for the burgers, Gavin,” he held out his hands, “what did you think I was gonna do?”

At once, Gavin felt himself turning bright red. _“Holy fuck there’s something seriously wrong with me. I thought he was gonna…no!! Never mind that! Why am I thinking so horribly about someone who’s trying to be nice to me?!??”_

“I’m sorry!” he apologized immediately, wringing his hands nervously together as he avoided looking at Raoul. “I just…I’m sorry, Raoul, I don’t know what came over me!”

Chuckling softly, Raoul placed his hands on his hips and shook his head, “Don’t worry about it, but can I please get inside the fridge, jumpy?” he winked at Gavin after throwing him that nickname, and Gavin moved out of his way as he stared at the drawing he was confused about once more.

Raoul caught where he was looking, and he sighed as he ran his fingers over the drawing. “It’s…” he stepped back a little and shook his head almost sadly, “…I’m sorry, Gavin, I keep this here because Paul insists it reminds him of the times we all had as a family, and I guess it’s one of the ways we can all still be together in his mind, maybe.”

Raoul shrugged again, muttering to himself as he opened the fridge door and brought out ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, relish, pickles, onion rings in a container, fresh tomatoes, lettuce, and the burger buns. He closed the fridge door as Gavin grabbed the food items and began washing the lettuce and tomatoes carefully in the kitchen sink. Truthfully, the shorter male had no idea what to say about the drawing. It seemed far too personal, and he decided not to go down that road.

“Oh, no,” Raoul stepped over to him, and he began taking the lettuce leaves apart as he himself washed them thoroughly. “You don’t have to work, here,” he pointed out, “you’re my guest.”

Gavin stubbornly shoved him aside gently by slamming his shoulder into Raoul’s. “Nuh uh, mister,” he chuckled, “I don’t accept gifts easily.”

Raoul smirked in amusement as he wiped his hands on a towel nearby. “Suit yourself, I’ll just get the meat from the freezer.” He bent down beneath the fridge and pulled open the freezer compartment drawer, yanking out bags of already prepared chicken burger paddies. He pointed at the patio door, next. “I’ll just be out here, okay?”

Gavin nodded, “Kay, I’ll just be in here, okay?”

This drew a laugh from Raoul, and he threw his head back as he waved at Gavin. “Kay, Gavin.”

“Kay, Raoul.”

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

When Gavin finished up in the kitchen, he set the little table with the items he wanted on his burger, and he soon saw smoke rising up from the barbeque set outside in the tiny backyard. He decided to join Raoul and see if he needed more help, while Paul played noisily upstairs in his room.

Gavin poked his head out the patio doors, “Need some help?”

Raoul shook his head as he turned off the barbeque and fanned it with his hands. “Nah, just got done.”

“Cool,” Gavin grabbed a serving plate, and he handed it to Raoul, “so where’s the beer, dude?”

Raoul snickered, “Easy, Jesus, you’re worse than my ex!”

It of course was a joke, but it tugged at Gavin’s curiosity anyway. He silently waited and watched as Raoul placed the steaming hot chicken paddies in the center of the table, and then he opened the fridge door once again. After shifting around through it, he soon pulled out two cans of beer, and he tossed one at Gavin while holding onto the other one.

“Cheers!”

Gavin smiled and went to go sit down, but before he did, Raoul pulled out his chair for him and beamed brightly at him.

“Oh, a gentleman, are we?” Gavin lightly quipped as he sat down and began stocking up his burger with the things he wanted.

Raoul shrugged as he sat down, a little, coy smirk upon his face. “What can I say? I’m a sweet guy!”

Gavin rolled his eyes, but remained quiet as he finished preparing his burger, and then he waited for Raoul to do the same thing. Once he’d prepared his burger, they knocked their beer cans together in a little ‘toast’.

They took slow sips, and then set their cans down simultaneously. Raoul laughed as he pointed between their cans back and forth. “See? We’re in sync,” he joked, “guess it was meant to be, huh?”

Gavin froze for a moment, thinking about what to say as he took a small bite out of his burger. It was really good, so he chose to comment on that, first and foremost while thinking of a way to politely ‘shoot down’ Raoul’s attempts at flirting once again.

“Hmm!” he looked down at the burger he was holding, “what’s the recipe for this, Raoul? It’s the best god damn burger I’ve had in a long time!”

Raoul snorted, “It’s nothing; just black pepper, and a hint of garlic and soy. Nothing more!”

Gavin stared at his burger, clearly impressed. Before he could take another bite out of it, Raoul set his burger down, and he wiped his hands on a napkin while grinning over at him.

“He’s a good-looking dude, your husband…saw his photos after I read about your wedding in the newspapers.”

Gavin almost dropped his burger, but he forced himself to remain calm. He slowly looked over at Raoul, and the other man grinned evenly at him, eyebrows slightly raised, as if he was expecting something from Gavin. Setting his food down for a moment, Gavin wiped his lips with a napkin before he spoke.

“Yeah…” he held his head down, “…he’s alright, I guess.” There was no way on earth that he was going to reveal how he really felt about Nines in front of Raoul. First of all, it wasn’t the other man’s business, second of all, it was just weird. Gavin knew that there were still a lot of blanks and question marks brewing around in his head when he thought about who Raoul even was. Soooo many years had passed since college, and the moment really dawned on him that he really had no idea about Raoul’s past, even. So why would he say anything about Nines?

Raoul brushed some bread crumbs off his fingers. “So you two met at work, huh?”

Now, he’d expected Raoul to at least read up a bit on the Ouroboros case, and considering how the violent gang had been constantly discussed on the news, he supposed it wouldn’t be a breach of privacy and confidentiality to talk about that side of it, briefly.

“Yeah,” he tossed his napkin to the side of his plate, “we’re both workin’ the Ouroboros case.”

Raoul nodded as he wrapped his hand around his beer can. “Cool, any progress on that so far?”

Gavin shrugged, “Small leads, but still no possible leader or motive.”

Raoul lifted an eyebrow, “A leader? You think they have a leader??”

Biting his tongue for a moment, Gavin studied Raoul for a long time. What had he been about to say to this man?? He still didn’t know him, and he was easily running his mouth about Nines, the wedding, _and_ the case?? This was so unlike him, but with Raoul waiting for his answer the way he was, Gavin just ran a hand through his hair before sipping on his beer again.

Het set the can down slowly. “Look, we have plenty of theories kickin’ around, but nothin’ I can share, alright?” Realizing how snappy and bitchy that sounded, he winced as he tried taking another bite out of his burger.

Raoul was giving him a rather confused look, but then he merely chuckled as he shook his head back and forth and grabbed his burger. “It’s all good, Gavin,” he mumbled out between bites, “I respect what you do, and I just want you to know that I’m constantly hopin’ you catch those sons of bitches once and for all.”

The detective hummed, “We’re tryin’, but this case is a lot more complicated than I thought, and workin’ with my husband is just…” his breath caught in his throat, and Raoul’s eyebrows rose up a little.

He leaned forward, “Yes? Work with your husband’s…what?”

Gavin looked around and shrugged, “My husband’s impossible to work with, that’s all. We don’t agree on many things at all, especially about the case. I want it done one way, and he wants it done another way, and I just can’t understand him.”

“Do you think it’s a communication thing?”

He frowned, as if thinking about it for a moment, but then threw it out the window. “No, it’s not that…it’s just that I feel he is wasting time by not gathering the evidence we really need, and he’s not so willing to share it with the proper people who can actually do something about it.”

Gavin frowned-mostly at himself-for finally voicing what really bothered him about Nines gathering information on Slo-Freeze instead of reporting it all to Captain Fowler. He looked at his burger, and then grabbed it slowly. It was as if time slowed down as he focused on his disappointed, heated thoughts. Strange; he’d originally contacted Raoul in hopes of discussing how to decipher feelings for someone, and yet, he’d been talking about the very person he had feelings for in a different way altogether…

Raoul was silent; listening intently as he chewed his meal slowly, eyes on Gavin.

“Maybe he just loves wasting time,” he whispered, almost, “maybe he wants to show everyone he’s better than me, maybe he wants to take all the credit for the case…I don’t know.”

Raoul gently lay a hand on the back of his. “You’ll figure it out, Gavin,” he encouraged softly and nicely, “you’re very talented and smart.”

Gavin acknowledged his words of encouragement and support, but then switched the topic really quickly as he slid his hand out from beneath Raoul’s. “So, how come you don’t have a girlfriend around?” he hoped he wasn’t going too far, but he wanted to distract himself from the case, as it made him remember Nines. He _soooo_ didn’t need to be remembering his husband right now-not when he was dining with another man!

Thinking about his answer for a while, Raoul took another bite out of his burger and leaned back. He wiped his lips, took another sip from his cold beer, and then scratched his neck. “To tell you the truth,” he began quietly, turning around to look behind himself, as if he was afraid of his son walking in on them any second.

“…I honestly think I just jump into relationships real quick, Gavin,” he stroked his chin for a moment, looping his hand into the crook of his forearm as he draped it across his chest, while the other hand was still stroking his skin on his face.

“I don’t think I’ve really sat down and made an effort to form a long-term connection with someone…maybe that’s why none of my relationships last long…”

Gavin had noticed that Raoul’s choice of words were interesting. He kept saying ‘someone’, and he kept using gender-neutral terms. He had to wonder why, and thinking back on their last phone conversation, he lowered his voice as he pushed his half-eaten burger to the side of his plate.

He leaned across the table a little, staring to the left at Raoul, who was seated beside him. Gavin opened his mouth, but the words died down for a moment. He closed his mouth, cleared his throat, and then somehow summoned the courage and strength to form his words properly.

“H-have you ever been curious about what it would be like to be with a guy?” he winced, hoping Raoul wouldn’t punch him, but the other man merely laughed as he stroked his chin and shrugged. His eyes were vacant, and he was staring at the center of the table as he seemingly zoned out.

He eventually ceased, and then looked over at Gavin and shrugged again. “I honestly don’t have the smallest bit of a clue anymore, Gavin,” he answered truthfully, “but I’ll tell you this; if you’d asked me that question many years ago, I’d have punched your lights out.”

Gavin nodded, “And now?”

Raoul stared intently into his eyes, practically seeing right through the back of Gavin’s head.

“Right now? I’d say I’m curious, and definitely open to it.”

The clock ticked loudly, and the kitchen appliances hummed and buzzed for many minutes before Gavin noticed they were too close. He inched his body away from Raoul’s, picked up his burger, and finished it silently.

Raoul followed suit, but would every-so-often stare at him, and it made Gavin’s mind blur in a serious of thoughts that came to him unbridled and uncontrolled.

The longer he thought about it, the more it made sense…no…it made perfect sense…

Why was he wasting his time focusing on Nines-a man who wasn’t even gay, and who would never be with him-when he had someone right before himself who was open to the idea of being with another man, and who wasn’t someone he worked with and engaged in conflict with on a regular basis?

He really needed to collect his thoughts about Nines once and for all when he got home, but for now, he wanted to enjoy the rest of his meal, and the rest of his drink in peace as he sat back and laughed with Raoul late into the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And no, no NOOOOOOOOOO, this does NOT imply Gavin is going to cheat, so please don't jump to that conclusion, my mans! He's just confused, and let's just say Raoul is an opportunist 😓😫😫👽


	28. Fracture and Repair

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The REAL chapter 28.  
> Thank you to anyone who was kind and supported me by the way :( You guys are a gem, and I DO apologize if I seemed cranky or naggy. I promise I am better now, and thank you for your patience! <3  
> We shall now move on with our story, my mans!!!  
> <3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING! Masturbation scene and all around pent-up frustrayshon.

_His bedroom door creaked open slowly, though the sounds of it were faint and inched forward until it hit his ears and yanked him out of his dreamland. He was now caught somewhere between dreaming and awake, and he had no idea what was going on._

_He felt eyes on him, and he lifted his head up from his pillow. His eyes opened, and he felt his pupils trying to adjust to the small bits of light seeping into his room from the hallway as the glow from the half-open bedroom door poured in. A shadowy figure loomed there, standing tall and still as a statue. There was a glint in his eyes somewhere above, and Gavin shifted as he turned around and faced the mysterious figure._

_He called out to it once or twice, but it was an unmoving mass. Like a wall or a rock, it refused to move. Gavin felt the sheets slipping off his warm body, and his mind registered the slightly cool breeze blowing in through his open window._

_Staring out his window, he saw the pale moonlight shining down upon him, but it wasn’t at the right position or angle where he could see who the figure was lingering in the doorway. It made him fearful, and he gripped his bed sheets tightly, trying to find his voice and bravery so he could call out to it one more time._

_That was when the figure swayed a little, and the bedroom door softly was closed. Gavin began panicking, thinking that the figure meant him harm, but when the shadow inched closer to the foot of the bed, Gavin was able to see two large hands. The hands didn’t reach forward to strangle him, however; they merely rested by his feet, simply laying on the clean red and white sheets for a moment. The figure sat with his back to Gavin, and after a while, the hands sat on top of Gavin’s ankles._

_It began from there. The hands then massaged almost tentatively at first, as if testing Gavin’s skin inch by inch. They then slithered up the length of his calves and shins, touching and groping him over the sheets, before one end of the silky sheets had been lifted. The hands snaked up along his skin, finally making contact with his kneecaps, and before he knew it, his legs had been partially pushed open and apart._

_Gavin saw blurs and darkness, and the sheets soon were pushed up over his abdomen. The figure used his hands well, and his finger ghosted along the erection Gavin never knew he even had. Unconsciously, Gavin’s eyes snapped shut, and he threw his head back and fell onto the soft, cushiony mattress and pillows while the figure massaged his thighs. Those hands delicately handled his flesh, and soon, warm kisses and licks accompanied the hands. It was as if Gavin had been the most exotic creature in the world needing to be worshipped for hours on end, and that was precisely what the strange figure had been doing._

_Gavin struggled and fought to keep his eyes open, but he couldn’t; not with the amount of pleasure bursting and shooting throughout his body. It pooled down in his stomach and then edged its way into his lower back, crawling up along his spine as he arched his back when the warm kisses rested tenderly on his hips._

_He’d surrendered to the pleasure, and he was only going to chase the sweetness it promised, now. Wherever it was going to take him, Gavin was prepared to go along with it. He didn’t want to think; he wanted to feel._

_The hands slid his shirt up and off his body, soon, and before Gavin could take a good look at the figure on top of him, he was pushed back down, and his neck was assaulted sensually with kisses. The lips peppered his skin so sweetly that he felt his knees buckle, and his fingers curled and wove around in the sheets as he sighed helplessly and softly in the darkness. The wind blew into the room, and it was a lovely contrast in temperature; hot against cold. It did wonders for his skin, and he wrapped his arms around the back of the man’s neck as he held him close to his chest._

_He felt no heartbeat, however, and he had to look up for the sake of satisfying his own curiosity._

_But the man wouldn’t move. He ravished Gavin’s chin, neck, collarbone, chest, ears, and nipples, even, and Gavin was soon a panting, whining mess of emotions and arousal. He twisted about on the sheets, getting entangled in them and the man on top of him. There was no stopping what was happening; it was meant to be, and Gavin only relented as he lost himself to the wonderful feelings and sensations all around him._

_Finally, he felt his boxers and shorts slipping and sliding off him and down his legs. That was when he panicked. Sitting up quickly, he grabbed the figure by the shoulders, and he fought hard to turn him so he could look into his eyes._

_What he saw was the distinct blinking circular blue LED light, spinning and turning like a top, and then he saw the cold blue eyes of his husband._

It all lit a fire in the pit of his stomach that was so potent that Gavin’s hand was already snaking down into his underwear. He cried out in relief when the warmth of his fingers and palm encircled his aching cock. He tugged at the flesh desperately, one, twice, hips arching into the air as he panted out, “Nines…”

Losing himself to the lull of his needy body, Gavin pulled up and down on his pulsating shaft while his heart practically burst through his chest. Behind closed eyes, he imagined what it would feel like to taste Nines, to kiss him, touch him, suck him…oh, how he wished those were Nines’ large hands wrapped deliciously around his pulsating cock right now…

_“NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!”_

Realizing what he was doing and who he was thinking of while doing it, Gavin sat up in bed violently. Yanking his hand out of his shorts, he felt his heart hammering in his chest as he nearly rolled off the bed and crashed down to the floor. He regained composure quickly, however, and he turned on his night table lamp as he panted and breathed both from fear and arousal.

_“That dream felt so fucking real! Oh my god!! I saw him, I felt him, I was there with him!!!”_

Gavin was in his own bedroom, thankfully, and he closed his eyes as he remembered helping Raoul clean up after their meal, and then Raoul asked him if he needed a ride home, to which Gavin insisted that he was going to go by taxi. Raoul had allowed it, as his son had called him upstairs to help him prepare for bed, and Gavin had left Raoul’s home and waited for nearly ten minutes for the taxi to arrive.

By the time he’d reached Nines’ home, he’d been so exhausted, tipsy, and heavy from the meal, that he just crashed into his bed. He’d been a fool to hope for a dreamless night, but Gavin hadn’t been expecting Nines to worm his way into his dreams!! Now, he was even more confused than ever before, and while he was trying to figure out his feelings for Raoul and his own husband, Gavin was left feeling irritable and grumpy all morning.

Nothing helped him cheer up. Not a brief, warm shower, not a quick conversation with Shelley, and not even his own inner musings. He’d been so tempted to turn to the internet for help and anonymous guidance, but he decided against it at the last minute. It’d be nothing short of ridiculous and foolish to type into a search bar: _what to do after having a sex dream about your husband?_

Oh, what a laugh that would be indeed for the whole internet for months to come.

Abandoning any help from online resources, he turned to his usual beverage of choice in the mornings. Unfortunately, his coffee sure as shit didn’t help either, and he was in no mood to have a cigarette; Nines needed his help immediately down in the secret room beneath the tunnels. They’d told Captain Fowler that they were onto something regarding Slo-Freeze, and the man allowed them to chase after it, as long as Nines updated the narcotics team as soon as he could. It was a done deal, and around 9:42 in the morning, Nines and Gavin made it down to the secret room.

Nines had been turning it more and more into a laboratory more than anything else, and as he went over Gavin’s notes on what they knew so far about Slo-Freeze and Red Ice, Nines ordered and bossed Gavin around to dilute the now-melted Slo-Freeze solution he’d spent days boiling and shaping up in his single running pot on the white, plastic table.

Gavin accepted it, trying to ignore Nines as best as he could. He somehow felt that Nines was in a terribly bad mood just like he was, and he suspected a lot of it had to do with the fact that he came back home so late the other night. Though the RK900 hadn’t asked his husband where he’d been, Gavin felt even angrier for that reason. Wasn’t Nines supposed to be protecting him?!?!? Why didn’t he give a shit where he was, how late he’d been out, and with whom he’d been hanging out??? It seemed as if Nines really didn’t give a shit one way or another, and that really got on Gavin’s nerves.

He angrily slammed knives and the cutting board he’d borrowed from the kitchen down on one of the long, rectangular tables, pulling it right up beside the white plastic table as the Slo-Freeze solution rested inside it. Leaving it alone to simmer for now, Gavin waved away the smoke that had gathered in his eyes as he chopped up stimulants that Nines had noted to react to the same chemicals found in Red Ice that were shared with Slo-Freeze. Although the former had fewer detrimental effects on the body immediately, Slo-Freeze was still far more dangerous, and Nines wouldn’t allow Gavin to work on it or test it without his consent and permission.

That suited Gavin just fine either way. He was happy enough to ‘recreate’ stimulants from the Red Ice, and he hurriedly chopped up bits of paprika powder-which he knew would add the burning effect users of Red Ice claimed to feel when they used.

Odd how minor cooking ingredients and items could be so deadly when mixed with dangerous and unstable chemicals…

Much the same of the instability and chemicals were running rampant in Gavin’s system, especially when Nines was going out of his way to really ignore him. He was standing across the room at the far back, where he’d moved the vials and chemicals and toxic liquids Gavin had recently cleaned and relabeled. Gavin had no idea what the hell Nines was looking for as he sorted through the vials, but every-so-often, he felt cold blue eyes glaring at him as though he’d committed a horrible crime. However, whenever Gavin would look up to meet those eyes, he would find Nines simply staring down at his notebook, or into a corner somewhere.

Bastard.

He worked diligently, not pausing to take a break, not even when sweat rolled down his back and neck, and he felt his wet bangs sliding down over his forehead and into his eyes. He scratched away at them, trying to push them back, but only ended up scratching the scar that ran over his nose. Touching it only pissed him off more, and Gavin looked down at his cutting as he organized bits of fresh tobacco and tar. These were some of the more common things found in addictive substances such as cigarettes and Red Ice, and he had labeled them and set them aside on petri dishes beside himself as he cut up the peppers and pickles for future pickling.

After a painfully long moment of uncomfortable silence, Nines set his vials down and glided silently to the front of Gavin’s table. Sensing he wasn’t alone, Gavin looked up expectantly. Nines stood like a medieval knight at his post; arms crossed over his chest as he posed tall and menacingly with a glare in his eyes. It immediately put up Gavin’s defenses.

“I’ve not done a single thing wrong for days,” he said in a firm tone, “and you’re obviously not here to congratulate me on my performance, so I can only guess you’re standing there to annoy me…” Gavin then chuckled with mire befitting hatred shining in his eyes, “…it isn’t gonna work, by the way.”

Nines sneered. “Do I need a reason to stand next to you, husband of mine?”

Ignoring the sarcasm, Gavin’s knife slammed against the cutting board particularly loudly. He had no answer for Nines, so he didn’t bother with one at all.

Nines seemed fed up with the silence after some time. “Call it curiosity,” he offered plainly, as if that was a good enough answer. It wasn’t, and Gavin scowled.

It was obvious that Nines was here to not only piss him off, but to ridicule him. Never had he allowed Gavin to take the ‘reins’ on the project, and he obviously wanted to see him fail. It was just that simple.

“You won’t make me make a mistake, you know,” Gavin snarled, mostly hoping Nines would just go away. How was he expected to work and measure his ingredients perfectly when his husband-and the object of his dark, deep desires-was looming over him like that?

Staring at him coldly, Nines folded his arms. “How arrogant you are, Detective,” he said. “You think you know me so well.”

_“Well, don’t I??? Haven’t I seen the real Nines all this time? The one who’s really sweet, tender, and caring when he thinks no one is giving it a second thought??”_

Gavin was absolutely confused. How could Nines be so heartless and cold after taking care of him when he accidentally happened upon the Slo-Freeze? How could do this when he turned gentler and more caring towards Shelley…giving Gavin the house key…after everything…

……………

_“Does he have some kind of Jekyll and Hyde complex? Or is he pissed because I came home really late last night?”_

Taking a quick peek at Nines while he prepared to be bold enough to ask his question, Gavin was unfortunately met with a glaring red LED light, and an equally pissed off and moody Nines.

_“Fuck it. Maybe I don’t know anything after all.”_

He was brought back to what Nines had just said a moment about. _“Maybe he’s right; maybe I don’t know him, truly, and perhaps he doesn’t want to give me the opportunity to get to know him.”_

He decided to work with that.

“Maybe I don’t know you as well as I should, but I’ve picked up on a few things,” he said coldly, trying to be as far-removed from the situation emotionally as Nines was. He roughly made a grab for the next ingredient in front of himself and began to chop, head down, leaving deep dents on his chopping board. Nines’ eyes burned into the back of his neck, but that didn’t stop him at all.

“Oh, of course,” Nines snapped shortly, “you’re well known for your powers of observation…how could I forget.” Nines’ tone was silky with menace, quite similar to the tone he’d used when he’d asked if Gavin had completed his notes on the chemicals regarding Slo-Freeze.

He really didn’t need the sarcasm at this time.

“What’s wrong with you?” Gavin asked as he slammed his blade down over the peppers, looking up again after a small pause with the knife still moving over the separate portions of paprika powder he’d laid out evenly in a small, neat little ‘pile’. “Why can’t you just be reasonable?”

The android suddenly looked incandescent with rage. Nines leaned closer, close enough for Gavin to feel that the force of Nines’ hate didn’t seem to warm his skin. He was livid, and his eyes and LED light held both darkness and redness unlike anything Gavin had ever seen, and he was only left paralyzed and rooted to the spot as he blinked up at Nines.

“I _am_ being perfectly reasonable,” Nines affirmed with a curt nod of his head. “In fact, I am being more than reasonable, considering how I’m sacrificing my time and efforts to train, protect, and help a bratty, hateful, little ungrateful wretch with a thick skull and delusions of maturity. _You_ , Detective, are the one who fails to be reasonable, although, considering your genetics, I can hardly be surprised.”

It was a low blow for Nines to attack the honor of his parents, but Gavin didn’t give a damn; he’d practically expected it now. What was another level of stooping lower, anyway?

Still, he burned with anger. “Don’t give me that,” he snarled, snatching up the crushed and ground tar. “Don’t play the bloody noble role of a sufferer, not when you’ve not even tried to help me or understand me! You just left me to struggle when you could’ve just been nice –”

“What you seem to be conveniently forgetting,” Nines interrupted in a vicious tone, and it sounded like it hurt him somewhere deep inside, “is that I _am_ suffering!!”

Suddenly, Gavin lost it. He just saw how badly he himself had been suffering and in turmoil; caught with romantic feelings between two men, unsure of whether his parents would accept him fully, unsure of his future, unsure of the case…everything started to burn and seep into his bones, and he couldn’t take it anymore.

“YOU DON’T EVEN FUCKING KNOW WHAT IT MEANS TO SUFFER!!” he’d screamed it out loud, and without thinking about it, he scooped up the tobacco and the paprika, and threw his cut portions into the cauldron that was already bubbling over with the Red Ice fragments and Red phosphorus.

At once, the pot began bubbling over, and it reacted violently.

Nines’ eyes widened, and Gavin only then realized what he’d done a moment before the mixture boiled over the rim of the pot.

“DETECTIVE, MOVE!!!!!!”

A force rammed into him, and Gavin was thrown backwards. He rolled over a few times, and he couldn’t see, or hear, or think, or breathe. Darkness enveloped him at the same time the pot exploded, and his ears and brain began hurting from the intensity of the explosion. A tingling pain was spreading out from his mouth and down into his chest, and he knew was on the floor. Gavin tried moving for a moment, but he was unable to; Nines had wrapped him in his arms protectively. For a split second, Gavin wondered if Nines was trying to smother him due to how tightly he was holding on to him, but then he relaxed when he saw that Nines had shielded him from the blast.

When Gavin was finally able to move a little bit, he touched his fingers to his lips in blind, hopeless panic. That was where the most amount of pain was coming from, and he felt something very warm and sticky on his lips. After dabbing his fingers over them, he looked and held them up to his eyes. They came back sticky with blood and glossy with his own saliva. He realized that he’d more than likely rammed his face against the stone floors, and he groaned in pain as Nines released his hold on him and rolled them both over.

The mess above on the plastic table was horrendous. The entire table had been burned through, and a giant hole was gaping in it. A tiny fire circled where the pot had exploded, but thankfully, Nines leapt up to his feet; a vampire rising out of the grave, and he grabbed a fire extinguisher in time.

The flames died down in no time, but the papers, their notes, their documents, the photographs, the whiteboard, everything had been completely destroyed. Gavin felt horribly about it, but there was nothing he could do about it now. He spat the blood out, watching as it splattered to the floor while he wiped his lips with the back of his hand.

Nines threw the fire extinguisher down on the stone floors when he was done with it, and he looked over at Gavin, hands shaking badly.

 _“Now I know why meth labs sometimes explode,”_ Gavin thought to himself as he got up and put his weight on his knees, wiping away sweat and who-knew-what-else from his hands. He trembled as he tried steadying his breathing and his heartbeat, but it was tough after everything that had happened.

A horribly foul, putrid stench was in the air, and it hung over their heads like burnt flesh. It made Gavin’s stomach churn, and he pressed a hand against his mouth and nose, suddenly wishing he had the common sense and decency to have worn a mask for protection. Who knew what the fuck the fumes hanging in the air could do to him?

“Detective,” said a voice, trembling and hoarse, and Gavin opened his eyes to see the sticky, gooey left-over substance on the edge of what was once the table, dripping down to the floor as Nines inspected and scanned it. When he was finished with that, he turned his full attention to Gavin, eyes wide and frightened.

“Detective, you’re bleeding!” Nines took a step towards him, already conducting a speedy bio-scan. He suddenly sighed in relief, seeing that Gavin was just fine. “It’s just a cut lip…are you alri—”

“Nines,” Gavin spat, wiping away more blood as he weakly balanced himself on his feet, and then stumbled backwards until he found something solid to support his weight.

Gavin was on his side against the far wall, and Nines was standing up against the whiteboard with a hand firmly pressed against the side of his body. His eyes were wide, and he was still trembling-possibly more so than Gavin was.

“Detective,” Nines hissed out with urgency, and it made Gavin feel even more weak in the knees. He didn’t want to get into the reasons why, but he was sure that it had been because of the explosion more than anything else.

Gavin wrapped his arms around himself as he tried to stop shaking, though none of his attempts actually ended up working for him.

“Fuck!” That was the only thing he could utter in the aftermath of it all, and it still wasn’t enough to describe how he felt. There was more pain now, radiating through his limbs like spirals of fire, agony almost eclipsing the chest-constricting panic. He couldn’t move. His eyes wouldn’t stay open, rolling back into his head as the fire started in his heart while his emotions bubbled and broiled inside him, much like the chemical explosion that had happened moments ago.

“Damn,” Nines muttered, trying to regain composure. Gavin wasn’t sure if he was doing it for his own sake, or for both of theirs, but he watched as Nines stood tall and pulled himself away from the board with a hand still tightly pressed on his rib cage. He faced Gavin completely, his trembling and shaking diminishing as he looked around at the mess, and then into Gavin’s eyes.

He raised a finger, and he pointed it at Gavin like a weapon. “You tell me tomorrow what happened, and tell me _why_ , Detective,” he hissed, blinking rapidly a few times, as if trying to blink away the mess and damage.

Gavin slowly stepped away from the wall he was pressed against. “I can tell you why now; I forgot the stabilizing agent. Tobacco and paprika means boom.”

Nines merely raised an eyebrow, “Congratulations. Now get out.”

Gavin didn’t need to be told twice; he packed up his things with trembling hands, sweeping whatever was still intact and ‘his’ off the floor in a hurry. He could still smell his own coppery blood all over his lips, but he didn’t let it bother him.

He was almost halfway through the tunnels when he remembered he hadn’t even closed the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OH MY MUNCHKIN! GAVIN! NINES!  
> -_-  
> Ugh...their chemistry is so much the room legit exploded.
> 
> I'm clocking out.  
> Can't even..


	29. Burdens of the Heart, Pains of the Mind

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Oh my gosh!! Oh my gosh!! Seriously you guys, Chillqu33n is way too nice!! 😥😥😰😰😭😭 *Points at the magnificent artwork in my story below* LOOK AT WHAT SHE DID FOR US!!!  
> Chillqu33n, I love YOU, your talent, your kindness, your whole spirit, my dear!!! Lots of hugs and kisses to you!!❣😭💓❤💋💘💕💘💋 Shelley looks so dang amazingly adorable I want to cry!! Look how happy Gavin is with her!!! UGHHHH
> 
> Bless you, dear, thank you from the moon and back!!  
> Links to the amazing artist's work and profiles:  
> https://sta.sh/04zavdgktkg  
> https://www.deviantart.com/chillqu33n  
> https://chillqu33n.tumblr.com/

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prepare to have your heart and brain literally explode, because mine did!!!

 

Gavin couldn’t just sit there in his bedroom-all clean and proper after his shower-while Nines tried tidying up the room beneath the mansion. It wasn’t fair, especially considering how Gavin himself had caused the explosion to begin with. He was grateful it hadn’t been a nasty one, but nevertheless, he knew he should’ve gone down to clean it and pitch in...at least a little!

It’d be the ‘right’ thing to do, and as much as Gavin was still heated at Nines’ prior actions, his own father had raised him to ‘be the better person’, even if it meant hurting his ‘ego’. So, it was time to do the right thing.

Gavin marched back down to the hidden room, and he found that the door had been shut by Nines after he’d left. It delivered a clear enough message, but Gavin didn’t want to hear it. Not now; not ever. He was going to try to sort this mess out, whether Nines accepted it or not.

In the past, he’d been very keen to really make an effort at letting Nines understand he was avoiding his presence by being late for dinner or hiding out in his room after work. But this time, he was going to make it different. He’d changed into black shorts and a black t-shirt, mirroring the black long-sleeved casual shirt Nines wore earlier that day, and the black jeans. Thankfully, he hadn’t had much of the chemical mess on his clothes, but he felt the need to change anyway. Gavin arrived as quickly as he could, hoping that Nines was still alright given the toxic chemicals still floating within the room around him. Strangely, the damage had even gotten through the door leading right to the room. It had bent the heavy wood in half, and was singed in horrible ways.

_“I didn’t even see the fuckin’ thing exploding that far, Jesus Christ!!!!”_

Another thought suddenly hit Gavin as he pressed his hand against the door.

_“Nines saved me…he saved me from that blast…he shielded me from it, and he was ready to sacrifice himself for me…holy shit…”_

He had to take a few moments to breathe as he processed this. Too much was still going on within him, and he didn’t know how to properly thank Nines. Should he offer him friendship? Should he confess his feelings? Buy him a gift? Gavin truly had no idea, but he was convinced that the first thing he could do-and the first thing Nines deserved-was an apology, and then a helping hand.

His choice and mind made up, Gavin knocked, cringed again when he remembered he hadn’t knocked since the first day he arrived in the mansion despite Nines requesting for him to do so, and pushed the door open.

Nines was gathering a bunch of black and singed papers in his arms, and he threw them into a black garbage bag. He’d tied it up when he heard Gavin’s footsteps approaching. A tiny, old-fashioned mop and bucket sat behind Nines, and Gavin felt like slapping himself now that he knew what Nines was doing just to get the room cleaned up.

_“He didn’t even ask me for my help…he’s doing this all by himself…”_

He shook his head. “Listen,” he paused, noticing how bossy and rude that sounded.

Nines froze midway through cleaning. “I’m listening.”

Gavin groaned before he corrected himself. “Look,” he said, and Nines looked up at him intensely. Seeing his husband’s blue eyes pouring into his own, Gavin abruptly lost the ability to speak.

……………

“I’m looking,” Nines announced dryly, after a moment of awkward silence.

“Errr, yeah,” Gavin muttered awkwardly. “Umm, I’m sorry about—”

“Shut up, Detective,” Nines murmured quickly, and Gavin was about to get angry when he realized Nines was saving them both the embarrassment. It was all said and done, now, and there was no logical point going over it. They’d both been upset with each other, and it was a lot better to just turn over a new leaf, so it seemed.

He sighed as he wrung his hands nervously together. “Alright,” he said warily. “What’s on the menu today?”

Nines gave him a withering look, which felt...strangely good. Nines hadn’t given him anything but stony silence or ugly glares for days, and this was a refreshing start, at least.

With the wave of a long hand, Nines gestured to the steam that was still rising out of the exploded pot. It had seeped through the table, and practically was meshed and molded into it as it rested in the stone floor.

“We’re going to try to remove that,” Nines sighed tiredly, “that is, _if_ the deed can be done.”

Gavin held up a hand, “When there’s a will, there’s a way!” He’d of course meant for it to be taken lightly and with good humor, but the meaning wasn’t received and interpreted that way by the stone-cold Nines. The RK900 merely glared at Gavin, and it was an unexpectedly ugly look.

Reeling back from it as though he’d been scalded with hot water, Gavin let out a pained cry.

Holding up his left hand, Nines pointed at a deep scratch mark and wound, but thankfully, it wasn’t as serious as needing intensive repairs. The mark had cut through his clothing and the first layer of his human skin, and blue blood had spilled all over Nines himself as he sneered cruelly at Gavin while holding up his injured hand. “May I please be allowed to enjoy my convalescence in silence?”

Gavin felt even more horribly than before. He knew he’d caused this, and it was a huge kick in the gut when he cast his eyes upon the wound Nines was currently trying to attend to.

Upon inspecting it, it seemed that the wound was healing up nicely with whatever regenerative features Nines had. Normally, Gavin would’ve offered yet again to help take care of Nines, seeing as the android had gotten in the way of some wood and blunt objects before they resulted in cutting Gavin up in the same way, but the attitude Nines was giving off currently just made it so difficult for Gavin to care much.

Still, due to how he felt about Nines and the situation, he couldn’t help but steadily approach the wounded android. “Here,” he began in what he hoped was a soothing tone, “let me see it.”

Nines rolled his eyes, “I’m fine—”

Gavin had already made a quick grab for his husband’s hand. He pushed back the bits of cloth and dark colored fabric from his shirt and rolled it all the way up to Nines’ elbow. Indeed, the wound was patching itself up nicely, but it needed to be wrapped up and protected.

“It’s not looking too bad,” Gavin commented, and Nines nodded.

Stroking the area of the human skin that wasn’t harmed, Gavin let out a sad sigh. He didn’t know why, but he felt so much sympathy for Nines, suddenly. Bits of his blood had tainted the tips of Gavin’s fingers, but the detective didn’t mind it as he hoped his tender massages and touches would at least comfort Nines emotionally in some way.

It took him almost two full minutes to realize that Nines was standing stiffly before him, rooted to the spot. Gavin’s massages came to a sudden and an abrupt halt. How long had he been massaging and tenderly stroking his husband’s arm??

Chancing a quick glance up at Nines, Gavin winced, and then blushed when he saw Nines’ eyes wide and equally bearing as much surprise and shock as his own were.

Gavin couldn’t believe that Nines was allowing for them to be so close!! If he tilted upwards a little, he was certain the tips of their noses would brush!! Curiously, Gavin took his time to carefully study Nines’ facial features. His nose was actually quite shapely and kind of cute, he hated to admit. His skin was slightly littered in random, light freckles near his cheekbones, and his lashes were actually a very, very light brown color…

As Gavin’s eyes swept over Nines’ forehead, he frowned when he saw that loose, long bang fluttering downward into Nines’ left eye. Gavin didn’t like that it was doing this, now, as he wanted to look into both of his husband’s eyes. He did the most natural thing that came to him; he reached up with a trembling hand and brushed the bang clear away from Nines’ eye. His fingers were tingling, and his hand even felt numb the moment his skin made contact with the soft, silky hair. When Gavin pushed it to the side, he could’ve sworn he heard Nines gasp…

_“It’s not my imagination!!”_

He stared into Nines’ eyes, and he was met with a very ethereal look that nearly made him burst apart at the seams. It was a completely frightened look Nines was giving off, making him appear to suddenly be so…so ‘human’…it didn’t match the personality traits Nines often had, but strangely, Gavin actually found himself enjoying how fragile, vulnerable, and open Nines appeared to be. In the midst of enjoying the raw look Nines was offering him, Gavin felt his arm suddenly burning…he realized that this entire time, he’d been holding it up in the middle of the air, even after he’d pushed that loose bang away.

Wincing in pain, Gavin slowly curled his fingers into his palm as his hand clenched into a tiny fist. Why was it that a single touch suddenly speared through his entire body in such a way?! What kind of an effect was this?!?! His heart was hammering in his chest, his fingertips and toes were frozen, sweat was pooling down his neck and leaking down his spine, the room was spinning, it was tough to breathe, and now his vision had been going blurry!!!

Suddenly, Nines snarled, and the beastly sound of it seemed to bring Gavin back to earth.

Before Gavin could say something, Nines shook his head, as if shaking away the quiet, tender moment. It was gone, then, and he leered mordantly at Gavin before he dragged his arm out of his grasp.

“Don’t touch me!” Nines snatched his arm away from Gavin and held it to his own chest almost protectively.

Gavin immediately dropped his hand. “Oookaaay then,” he turned and bent down to peer at the steamy mess rising up slowly into his nostrils. Truthfully, he’d been more than embarrassed for nearly losing control and making a huge deal out of nothing. How was he going to explain himself to Nines?!?! He had to recover from whatever the heck had just transpired between them, but he figured that if Nines asked, he could always blame it on the chemicals and toxic fumes…

It seemed that either way, his husband didn’t care much, though Gavin was more than sure that whatever had happened had left an effect on Nines as well. The RK900 was fumbling around awkwardly, searching the messy room for something while growling and muttering to himself.

When his quest was complete, Nines crudely fashioned a makeshift ‘binding’ for his arm out of bits of cloth used for cleaning the lab equipment, and it served its purpose as he ceased bleeding out thirium once he’d carefully wrapped the cloth around his arm a few times. Eventually, it had been woven tightly on his forearm, and it was apparently good enough for Nines that way, it seemed.

Gavin’s curiosity led him closer towards the steaming cauldron, despite something in his gut screaming at him to get away from the putrid stench. He’d barely been leaning over it, curiously studying it for a few seconds, when he felt faint. He then backed away from the eerie cauldron, turning his head to escape the fumes.

Nines caught sight of what was happening, and he stepped over towards Gavin quickly. “You shouldn’t put your head over that,” he said coldly and sternly while holding his non-injured arm out before Gavin, “the fumes contain dangerous properties!”

And Gavin could feel them perfectly well…he was feeling quite dizzy with them in fact, but he had the feeling that this was the least of his concerns for the time being.

Tossing a goofy grin at Nines, he swayed a little. “Sure,” he said weakly, “mmm fine…” he stepped away from both Nines and the pot for a moment, but the second he got up too quickly to his feet, the blood drained away from his face, and he collapsed into Nines’ outstretched arms. Gavin’s leg had tangled into a mess of wires and tubes from the lab equipment, but that didn’t stop Nines from hoisting Gavin up into both his arms. He placed Gavin’s hands in his lap as he carried him bridal style over to lie down on one of the rectangular tables that hadn’t been damaged from the explosion.

Once he was away from the dangerous fumes, Gavin awoke with Nines kneeling over him, cradling his head in his lap, a thumb on his eyelid as though he’d been ready to check his eyeballs for movement. Nines was openly staring at him, and there was definite panic there-in both his eyes, and his red colored LED light. Gavin felt a flush of something like triumph move through him like a strong current. Nines cared…Nines really did care about him…that alone made his entire month that he felt like crying.

Still, a small scowl made its way across his husband’s eyes and facial features once he saw that Gavin was awake and cognizant.

“Clumsy fool,” Nines growled inelegantly.

“Your ventilation is shit,” Gavin retorted in a weak huff.

“Your safety checks are non-existent,” Nines threw back, just with enough venom to get his point across.

Gavin smiled softly while he reached out for the hand that Nines had wrapped up so his wound would close and heal. “I like your voice.” While it was the truth, he’d still stated it hoping he’d made a valiant attempt to stop his dizziness with willpower alone as he provided a small distraction for himself.

“You’re an idiot,” Nines argued in a clipped response, though alarm audibly hitched in his breath. He pulled his arm away from Gavin’s grip, though with some reluctance, it seemed.

Gavin began stirring in his husband’s lap, and Nines gently released him.

“I’m fine,” Gavin sighed out, looking around the room. “We haven’t made any fuckin’ progress, huh?”

Nines rolled his eyes as he sat beside Gavin on top of the table. “No, though I suppose with _you_ lingering around, Detective Reed, no one can make progress, regardless of input and effort dedicated to the task.”

Gavin laughed, “Did you actually just make a joke, Nines?!? Hahaha, woooow!”

Nines huffed as he got off the top of the table. “I think that’s enough excitement for one evening, Detective,” his eyes raked down Gavin’s form, and he tilted his head almost curiously at him, “Considering how you’re well, I think we should head out for the night, don’t you?”

Gavin wanted to clean out his ears. Had he really just heard Nines correctly?!?

“You…you want us to g-go out???”

 _“Like ‘go out’ as a couple?!?! A real couple?!?!”_ He couldn’t believe it, and he had to mentally replay what Nines had suggested a few times to the best of his memory.

_“Be still, my beating heart; he did in fact just say that!!! I’m not dreaming!!!”_

Nines sighed, “I thought perhaps a change of scenery and a break from all this perpetual work around the case may help you get your bearings together, don’t you agree?”

Gavin couldn’t agree more. He was already yanking Nines towards the door, and the android allowed it for a moment, before he gently pulled his hand out of Gavin’s.

“Only an hour or two, Detective,” Nines hissed at his back as Gavin practically ran through the tunnels like an eager, excited child.

Gavin nodded as he smiled at Nines over his shoulder. “An hour suits me juuuuuuuust fine!!!!”

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Nines certainly knew how to find fancy clubs and bars in a jiffy. He drove them to one called: _Just Gents_ , and apparently it was still within its opening week. For the celebration of its establishment, new patrons got in for free, and had the first round of drinks served to them for free. It was a deal Gavin wasn’t going to miss out on, and he sat at a comfortable red booth in front of Nines.

A circular table was all that was between them, and Nines took off his black peacoat as Gavin selected a drink for himself.

“I’ll have white wine, please,” he said to the bartender once he stood by their table. As the man went off to bring his drink, Gavin clasped his hands in his lap as he beamed joyfully around the bar.

Internally, it was brighter than daylight, and soft, classical music was played by an android performer in the center of the bar on an elevated stage. The stage spun around in a slow circle, and people really seemed to enjoy it as they chatted and toasted to the performer in gratitude.

Both androids and humans frequented the bar, and Gavin looked around at everyone getting all snug and cozy in their round booths that seemed to demand privacy from the rest of the world. This was perfect. This was wonderful. This was exactly what he needed after a few tough weeks. Gavin relaxed himself as he kicked his feet out before himself and stretched his arms back to rest against the top of the booth.

The scents of expensive cologne, perfume, deodorant, wine, grapes, and other foods got to him in the best of ways. He closed his eyes as he took in a deep breath, willing himself to relax even more.

“This is wonderful, Nines,” he whispered out in happiness, “thank you…”

Nines stared at the alcoholic beverage in Gavin’s glass before his eyes swam around the room, casually landing on the faces of young, attractive men. He then held his head down and stared right into the center of their table. “There are a lot of interesting individuals here tonight, Detective,” he gave a soft smile, “you don’t have to be seated here with me the entire time, you know…”

Not really catching on to what he was saying to the full extent, Gavin frowned. “What do you mean, Nines?” He didn’t give a crap about the other people in the bar!! What was Nines suggesting??

The android waved a hand around the bar, “Why remain here with me, when you could be enjoying the company of another who will no doubt suit your interests?”

Gavin frowned as he leaned forward, staring into Nines’ eyes angrily. “Okay, so let me get this straight,” he hissed thinly, “is my own _husband_ telling me he’s totally fine with me talkin’ to other people and possibly spendin’ the night with them?!?” he was livid, and he couldn’t believe that Nines was even suggesting this!

The android calmly stared at him. “You would have me believe that no one in here suits your fancy and would be able to better entertain you and provide for you intimacy and company?”

Gavin growled in irritation, “Fuck no, Nines,” he set his drink down then, resisting the urge to slide it into Nines’ chest across the table. “Just drop the subject, alright??”

Eyeing the men’s room, Nines merely tossed Gavin a small nod. “It’s fine, Detective,” he got up slowly, “you stay here and enjoy your drink; I’ll be right back.”

Gavin was far too angry and confused to say anything or question anything, but he needed to relax and get his mind off what Nines said. He merely closed his eyes again as he drowned himself in the light music playing, and as Nines walked closer towards the washroom, he made eye contact with another android seated at the far end of the bar counter.

The android nodded at him and offered him a small, friendly smile. He looked to be about 25 or so in human years, and he had tanned skin and soft, brown hair with chocolate brown eyes. His lips were plump and perfect. As Nines walked over to him, he made sure he stayed out of Gavin’s view.

He held out a hand for the other android to take, and Nines watched while the young-looking android pressed his palm gently against Nines’ as their human skin deactivated quickly. Both their LED lights flashed yellow, and they began communicating and interfacing with each other at high-speed.

**_Do you see that young man over there a few feet away from you? The one with the dark brown hair who has his back turned towards us?_ **

The other android stared over at Gavin and nodded. **_I do, yes._**

**_I need you to engage him in a conversation, and act as though you are sexually interested in him._ **

The android chuckled in his mind, then. **_Who’s saying I have to really ‘act’? The man is indeed attractive…_**

He eyed Gavin with concupiscence, and Nines felt a little bit of anger spike up inside himself. **_He may initially reject your advances, but pursue him and test his limits. I’ll return in due time, but you’re NOT to go home with that man, or lay a finger on him, are we clear?_**

**_You bet, handsome._ **

They disconnected their bond, and Nines finally walked inside the men’s room and disappeared.

The new android waltzed over to Gavin, and he stopped as he stood by him and gently tapped his elbow. Gavin opened his eyes, eagerly expecting to see Nines again, but then he frowned in disappointment when he was faced with a new android instead.

“Oh…” he blushed, “h-hi?”

The android winked at him. “Hey sugar, mind if I sit and chat with you for a bit?” Not bothering to wait for a response, he plopped himself down where Nines was once seated. Gavin scowled at him, but tried to keep his tone friendly and polite.

“Umm, you can’t really sit there…”

The android tilted his head at him in confusion, his eyes a little wide. “Why not, sweetie?”

“Because my _husband_ will be back soon, that’s why.”

Smirking, the android placed a hand over his chest. “I’m Andy,” he introduced, reaching forward for Gavin’s hand, but he held it down firmly in his lap and merely nodded coldly.

“That’s nice, but you really shouldn’t sit here, Andy.”

Andy tapped the table with a few fingers as a dreamy expression crossed over his face. “I think you came here alone, sweetie…”

Gavin shook his head, “Nope, I have a husband!” as if wanting to prove his point, he flashed up his ring before Andy’s eyes.

Andy whistled in amusement, “Sure is a nice rock you have there, handsome!”

Gavin recoiled in disgust immediately. “Don’t call me that!”

Winking at him playfully, Andy grinned a toothy grin. “Sorry, Sir Sexy!”

“Don’t call me that, either!!! I’m _married_ , for god’s sake!!”

The android gasped in surprise, and he nodded slowly. “Oh yesssss, I think I remember seeing you with someone, now that I think about it…” he snickered cruelly, “…but please don’t tell me that stick-in-the-mud is your _husband_!!”

Gavin fumed, “He _is_! Why’re you insulting him??”

Andy merely waved at him as he looked off to the side, already bored. “No reason, really, just can’t imagine someone like _you_ with someone like _him_ …”

Gavin pointed to the side, indicating that he wanted Andy to leave. “Just go,” he snapped viciously, “before I really fuckin’ lose my temper.”

Scoffing, Andy got up, and just in time; Nines opened the bathroom door and began walking back towards them.

Andy winked flirtatiously at Gavin and waved as he walked away. “Later, sexy!”

Gavin growled, but quickly quieted down when Nines sat back down and glared in the direction where Andy had walked in. “Who was that?” he asked nonchalantly, hoping he was as good of an actor as he thought he was.

Gavin sighed in frustration, and then the bartender arrived with a refill of his drink. Gavin practically tore it off the man’s serving tray, and he clenched it tightly against his chest as he sneered. “Just some jackass who was hitting on me, it was awful.”

Nines hummed, “Oh?”

“Yeah,” Gavin sipped his drink slowly, “I told him I was married, but it took him a while to get the damn hint. Stupid android.”

Quickly scanning him, Nines soon found out that Gavin was 100% telling him the truth. He really had no idea what to say, so he pulled out wads of cash and left them on the table to pay for the drinks. It appeared he was suddenly apprehensive, and rather rigid, and Gavin had to wonder if it was because of his statement regarding ‘stupid androids’.

“Nines? You okay?”

The RK900 nodded stiffly, “I still have a lot of work to do in the lab in the morning, so it’s best if we finish up here quickly, Detective.”

Gavin threw his head back and groaned, “But I just got here, plus, I was having fun!!”

Peering down at the perfectly squared ice-cubes in Gavin’s glass, Nines lowered a hand to his lap once he’d pushed the money into the center of the table. “That’s always been your problem, Detective,” he beckoned the bartender over, pointing at the cash, “you constantly want to have fun…though now’s not the time, nor the place.”

Getting up wordlessly, Nines threw his coat back on, and he was already heading out of the bar. Gavin downed the rest of his drink quickly, finding that he wasn’t in the mood for Nines’ acerbic remarks. He’d hurried to catch up with his husband so much that he began internally and mentally cursing Nines as he spilled some of his expensive drink onto his jeans accidentally.

Nines hadn’t even allowed him to enjoy the full hour he promised him they would enjoy, but little did Gavin know that within his husband’s mind, regrets, worries, fears, but also a huge sense of relief had been churning and burning all night.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin heard footsteps around the house at five in the morning. He’d never been awake this early, but since he was a light sleeper, there was no way he could go back to bed now that he knew Nines was moving about. He heard groaning and shifting of the floorboards, indicating that Nines had moved the hidden door and bookcase to head down to the messy secret room in the tunnels, no doubt to still try and clean up the mess that was still waiting for them. Gavin supposed he should’ve also been doing the same.

He pushed his covers off himself quickly, looking over at Shelley while she ‘rested’ on one of his pillows close to him. She was in some kind of ‘stasis’ just like other androids, but the moment he moved, her light turned on, and she floated upwards.

“Good. Morning. Gavin.” She was now able to greet him using his first name, and he smiled at her as he ran a hand through his hair.

“Mornin’ sweetie,” he moved off the bed and quickly and neatly made it before putting on a loose pair of jeans and a light brown sweater.

Shelley noticed it and decided to comment on it, a sign that she was indeed ‘developing’ her own personality like Gavin had taught her as opposed to just waiting around for orders.

“What. Are. You. Up. To?”

Gavin smirked at her. “Just gotta help Nines with something, love, but when I get back…” he threw her a playful wink as he made his way over to the bedroom door, “…we’re gonna learn some slang!”

Beeeeeeeeep!! “Slang. Vocabulary. Database. Uploading.” It appeared she was already on it, going through words as her light turned to a steady light orange. Suddenly, her neck straightened, and she faced Gavin. “Why. Don’t. You. Chill. With. Me. Instead. Precious?”

Gavin winked at her, “I would, but I really gotta get goin’ to see if Nines needs any help, but I can’t say I’m lookin’ forward to it…” he then whispered at Shelley, “…we may never know what kind of a mood he’s in!”

BEEEEEEEEEP!!! “Def. Agree. That. Emo. Android. Hopefully. Won’t. Spazz. Out. On. Your. Ass.”

So it appeared Shelley was learning slang and picking up on how to converse with him as though they were friends! Gavin loved it. She was such a fast learner, and she’d already been using words he himself would’ve used as a teenager.

“That’s my girl,” Gavin whispered, closing the door behind himself as he made his way down to the kitchen. While humming and whistling, he quickly fixed himself a cup of coffee before he went to join Nines in the damaged room.

When Gavin reached the room, he found that it was extra cold and dark for some reason, even though there was a tiny window in the far right-hand corner of the room. But it was hardly a good light source, especially at this hour in the early morning. He had to almost squint as he saw Nines moving around the room, putting the shelves back up in the hooks within the walls, steadying them and making sure they were steady and straight.

“Good morning,” Gavin sang out brightly, “you know, you ought to get some better lighting in here, Nines!”

He’d meant to not only start a decent conversation, but he’d wanted to at least be a little more chipper towards Nines. Unfortunately, Nines turned around and cast him a look. It was unexpectedly ugly, and it made Gavin stop dead in his tracks.

_“God, he really doesn’t want us to be friends, does he?”_

Gavin set his coffee cup down on a table and wandered over towards Nines as he tried balancing another shelf on his kneecap whilst trying to hook it back on the wall. Reaching for it slowly, Gavin spoke out lightly, “I can help with that—”

The shelf was yanked away from him, almost to a violent degree.

“I can handle it,” Nines growled at him, slamming the shelf onto the wall and snapping it in place as he stood back and grabbed whatever books that were still unscathed by the damage and stacked them onto the shelf neatly.

Gavin stood back and watched as he folded his arms over his chest. He snorted rudely after a few minutes. “Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning…”

Nines merely ignored him, walking over to grab a plastic container filled with glass and other sharp items, and he slammed it down over a desk as he got the rest of the trash and junk off the floor carefully. Stepping around him, Gavin noticed his LED light was red the entire time.

“Something on your mind, my dear husband?” he asked sarcastically, and Nines still insisted on ignoring him.

Gavin allowed it for at least twenty-five minutes or so, initially thinking that Nines just needed ‘some time and space’. But when it had gone on for too long, and when Gavin noticed that Nines was treating him as if he weren’t even in the room, he had enough of it.

Stomping a foot down angrily, he stormed over towards Nines when he lingered around the damaged whiteboard, and he snarled heatedly into his face. “What the hell’s wrong with you _now_??” he glared angrily at Nines, trying to make eye contact, but Nines merely stared behind him at something else.

“What have I done??”

That was when Nines brushed past him, but before he could head out the door, Gavin dove in front of him, blocking his way. Nines snarled, but still didn’t utter a word.

Gavin got up close in his face, not giving a damn about personal space anymore. “Good morning,” he hissed icily, “I just thought I’d say it a second time, in case you didn’t freakin’ hear me the first time around!”

Finally, those cold blue eyes regarded him. Nines’ upper lip curled back in a vicious sneer. “I’m sorry, Detective,” he spat with pure venom, “your precious ego will have to wait; I’m busy with cleaning up _your_ mess still!”

Gavin snapped, “I offered my help, but you kept ignoring me!!” he shoved Nines as hard as he could in the chest, “what’s gotten into you?? What have I done?”

“Nothing, Detective Reed,” Nines growled at him, “which is precisely my point; you behaved completely true to form, and it was foolish of us both to expect something novel and different from you.” He turned around on his heels and made his way once again towards another corner of the room, and Gavin gaped at him.

“The hell does that shit mean?”

Nines didn’t provide him with an answer, and it really was getting underneath his skin, now. He made his way over towards him, but Nines held out a hand.

“I’m growing weary of your company, Detective,” came Nines’ unexpected scathing comment, eyes flicking once over towards Gavin for a few moments before he looked at a wall.

Gavin frowned, “So…so you mean…” his heart started beating erratically, as his brain kind of grasped what Nines was implying. But there was just no way his heart wanted any of it to be true…no, he couldn’t even abide by that thought. Not after things had been going so well last night…not unlike a wonderfully sweet dream come true…

Nines merely straightened his black shirt out with a hand, completely unaffected. “It is _exactly_ what I mean, Detective…” his eyes turned once more to Gavin, and a horrible, evil grin formed on his face slowly, draining the life and energy out of Gavin.

“…I merely wish to seek out company other than your own, Detective.”

If his husband’s grin hadn’t taken away all his hope and energy, his words that moment for sure had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EXPLOSION!!  
> SHELLEY! You cute little goob!! You're finally acting and talking like a human! 😓😓😭😭💞💞💞  
> What the suck, Nines!! Just tell Gavin how you feel instead of...UGH!!!!!!  
> ⚔🔪😣😷🤯🤯🤪🤢🤮  
> *Avixi is dead* 
> 
> Brb.


	30. Face of Despair, Arms of Mercy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Guys!! Yet again we've all been lucky to have a wonderful gift of a group of beautiful artwork from a reader named Rqvioli!!! They've drawn Shelley and there's 3 versions of our cutie Nano-bot! I sadly got my instagram account deleted😭😭😭😰 (don't ask), I'd like to post one of the photos on here, but I'm waiting for another way to download the lovely artwork, so hopefully Rqvioli can be kind enough to send the art again to me in another format! 
> 
> In the meantime, I do encourage EVERYONE to go to Rqvioli's instagram and check the art out for yourself!!!!
> 
> Thank you so much my dear, I know each and every one of my readers and followers will enjoy your hard efforts, and I thank you personally the most from the bottom of my heart!!!💞💞💞💕💕
> 
> Link to their instagram: https://www.instagram.com/peaches.are.for.losers/  
> Link to Shelley art: https://www.instagram.com/p/BzwZb4-jzrl/
> 
> Say Rqvioli's name with reverent pride! ❤❤❤❤💘💘💘 (PLEASE let me know if there's another way I can download the pics, my dear, and I'll edit it into my work!! I apologize, though!!! 😰😰😰)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want everyone to touch their chest so they can feel their heart beating.  
> Okay, now that you've all done that, I hope you won't be too upset with me because this chapter is a bit heart breaking 😰😭😭😭💖(it all gets fixed near the end, don't worry!)

Gavin had spent half the day cooped up in his room, but he refused to cry. The moment Nines told him he wanted to seek other people out, he knew his world had blackened, but there was nothing he could do. This wasn’t something he could change or force, and no matter how badly he’d wanted to grab his gun and point it at Nines’ head so he could ‘force’ Nines to be with him, none of it was realistically plausible. It was just better to accept things as they were, before both of them got terribly hurt.

 _“Like he can even get hurt,”_ Gavin hissed in his mind, _“the cruel son of a bitch doesn’t even have a heart!!!”_

Understanding his predicament finally, he wheezed out painfully in the emptiness of his own room, “What was I thinking??!”

Needing to vent, Gavin dove for his phone, snatching it off the bed, and he hurriedly called Raoul on Facebook messenger. He noticed that the man wasn’t online, but he hoped he would appear-as if by the magic of Gavin wanting and needing to talk to him. It appeared however that luck and fate weren’t his friends; Raoul wasn’t picking up at all.

After trying to connect to Raoul twice and after failing both times, Gavin threw his phone back down on his bed as he cried out in anger. He had no one to talk to; Connor and Hank were out of the city taking a small ‘vacation’ of sorts together, and his parents weren’t the type of people he could just openly discuss this with. He was truly alone, and he hated that Nines was the one solely responsible for making him feel this way.

Wasn’t Nines supposed to be helping him? Supporting him? Wasn’t he supposed to be taking care of him and showing him kindness?! Wasn’t that how any marriage worked? He’d always thought of them as sweet friendships and partnerships as a young child, given how loving and nurturing his own parents were towards one another. While growing up, Gavin and his sister had been shown nothing but love and adoration, and even their parents made sure to never bicker or argue with each other in front of Gavin and his sister. He’d never had to worry about his parents divorcing, and whenever he’d heard of stories about other classmates’ parents separating at school, he’d always been secretly grateful that his own family and home life never had to go through that.

But now, everything had turned on a dime. His ‘good fortune’ had indeed run out, and the tides had flipped and drowned him in a sea of dark curses that promised him he wouldn’t ever be able to have a ‘happy ending’ and a peaceful life. Nines wasn’t the ‘dutiful’, doting, kind, gentleman Gavin had believed him to be. Gavin felt this was all his fault, however. Just how long had he placed his own husband on a pedestal with visions of only perfection? It was so unrealistic to do so, and he hated that he’d created a near-perfect image of Nines while another reality had been painting a sullied picture ‘behind the scenes’ all along.

It went against everything he felt and believed about Nines, and he hated that it burned him deeply inside like a fire from hell.

A door downstairs somewhere abruptly slammed, and Gavin yanked his own bedroom door open, fire burning in the pit of his stomach. As he approached the landing of the second floor, he peered down and saw Nines rummaging through the hallway closet. He’d been dressed in a very fancy black three-piece suit, and he was currently fishing out his best-looking and most fashionable peacoat…

That was when Gavin saw the entire world in a shade of blood-red.

_“He’s dressed like this because he’s going to out to meet someone…”_

Nope. This wouldn’t do.

_“Maybe he doesn’t take this marriage seriously, but I do, and I’m NOT fuckin’ sharin’ you with ANYONE, Nines!!!”_

Gavin raced down the steps, taking two at a time, and when he reached the main-floor, Nines whipped around and scowled at him. “What do you want, Detective?” he asked in a bored tone while slowly putting his peacoat on.

Despite not having eaten anything all day except coffee and half of an apple, Gavin was still filled with energy, though it had been backed up by rage and contempt. He snarled at Nines as he motioned up and down at his get-up. “You’re dressed like that to go out?”

Nines’ tone was as waspish and cutting as it had ever been, “None of your business, Detective.”

Gavin wanted to bash him over the head with a rock. “Going out to a club, or another bar, eh Nines?” he wanted to goad Nines into another argument out of sheer hatred and anger, but Nines wasn’t playing into it. He wasn’t even the least bit daunted or unsettled by the raw, potent rage seeping out of Gavin, and he merely straightened the lapels of his coat out as he stared down at Gavin cruelly.

“Where I choose to go, and with whomever I choose to consort with is-and never was-your concern at all, Detective,” he ground out viciously as he checked his reflection out in a mirror for a moment. “As I already told you, I wish to seek others out.”

At the precise moment he’d heard those harsh words spilling out of his husband’s mouth, Gavin felt his heart skipping many beats, and then it stopped beating altogether. It must’ve crashed and sank deeply into his stomach somewhere, and his throat was so tight and constricted that he couldn’t breathe. It hurt still hearing Nines utter such a profoundly cruel thing, and Gavin had to force himself to inhale before he fainted. Feeling dizzy and weak in the knees, he knew it was a better option to head back into his room and rest, but he couldn’t; not when Nines was going to…

Gavin slapped a hand across his own thigh. “So you’re basically saying you want to cheat on me, huh? Is that it?”

The look Nines gave him then was one that wavered on astonishment, but before he could say anything, Gavin stared at the car keys dangling out of his coat pocket. Seeing them glinting up at him in the lights toyed with his heart and emotions, and it really solidified every worry and fear Gavin had about Nines heading out. He really _was_ planning on heading out to seek someone else out, and Gavin’s blood began boiling.

Glaring back at Nines then, he snapped, “Going to pick out someone for the night at one of your fancy clubs then, Nines?” he knew it was pathetic and childish, but he was unable to stop himself.

Whirring and beeping sounds suddenly were coming from somewhere behind him, and Gavin knew it was Shelley. She’d likely come out of Gavin’s room to inspect the noise and commotion, no doubt.

When Gavin peeked down at the floor, he saw Shelley hovering by his legs with a cautious and concerned yellow light beaming up at him like a beacon. “Gavin?” she even sounded more than worried for him, her voice wavering. “What’s. Going. On. Love?”

He held back from so much as he fought hard to remain strong. “I’ll be okay, Shelley, just please go back upstairs, okay sweetie?” His hands were trembling, and Shelley scanned his body quickly before silently obeying, though she floated back up the large staircase incredibly slowly, as if reluctant to leave Gavin and Nines alone.

Nines rolled his eyes once Shelley was gone. “This is such a waste of time, Detective!”

Gavin turned back to him, then, scowling and glaring more than he ever had before. He suddenly remembered just how angry he was before Shelley’s interruption. Brows furrowed tightly, he sniffed. “Ooooh, a thousand pardons for getting in the way of your man whore plans, Nines!!”

The android’s jaw dropped, “But I wasn’t going to—”

“Fine then,” he spat, “go be with your new bitch, then!”

Nines was already snapping back at him, “You obstinate, immature—”

He didn’t give Nines the opportunity to carry on with a litany of insults, however. He snatched up the car keys right out of the android’s coat pocket, and he slipped into some sneakers really quickly. Before Nines could reach for the keys-much less do anything else, Gavin yanked open the front door of the house, and he tore down the front yard, unlocking the black Cadillac. Its lights flashed when the doors had been unlocked, and without thinking, Gavin threw himself roughly onto the driver’s seat.

“Detective!!!”

He knew Nines was calling after him, but he didn’t care. He needed and wanted to be as far away from Nines as he could for the time being…or maybe forever. He didn’t care anymore, and he couldn’t; not when his heart hurt and bled the way it was ever since Nines told him what he had been planning on doing. Gavin’s mind just couldn’t put up with that image, and he sped through the city, not sure of where he was actually even headed.

Any place was better than around Nines, and he was certain he’d broken and violated at least five different traffic laws by the time his eyes stop burning and stinging with tears. He needed a napkin, or something, and as he fumbled around in his jean pockets, he felt a piece of folded paper hit his fingers. Fishing it out of his pocket, Gavin used the lights of the buildings, street lights, and traffic to gaze down at it as he unfolded it carefully while driving. It’d been the very thing he didn’t want to look at, right now, and it made his heart ache and burn with pain and fury.

He was holding onto the hand-drawn image of Nines smiling-the image he’d created many weeks ago. But where was that smile he longed to see on his husband’s face, now?? Did he even realize how very much Gavin wanted to see him smile? No, Nines never cared. All Gavin had wanted was for Nines to smile at him in a similar way to the one on the sketch. But alas, perhaps Gavin was a fool in love…Nines didn’t care; he never would.

_“And I don’t care either, now!”_

Holding up his hand against the rolled-down window, Gavin was ready to toss out the drawing into the streets. Nines deserved it, after everything he’d put him through. Feeling the night air around his clenched fist, Gavin blinked back more tears as his heart thumped against his chest, as if serving as a painful reminder that it still beat; it still felt; it still hurt.

Once or twice, he tried letting the picture go as the car sped on through the city, but he found he really couldn’t…he didn’t want to…

Despite begging his fingers to let the sketch go, his body wasn’t listening to his requests, and Gavin clenched his teeth together as his arm hung limply outside the car window.

_“I…I can’t!! Dear god, I don’t want to let him go!!”_

Gavin reached up and wiped the corner of an eye, wondering how and when he’d started crying, but he knew he had when his hand came away wet with the salty essence of his own tears. He placed the picture back in his pockets, crying out in pain and relief when he looked down briefly and confirmed that he still at least had the drawing of Nines.

But why did he want so much more??? What was he expecting?!?! Nines couldn’t change, and he never would!!

He slammed a hand on the steering wheel angrily. “FUUUUUUUUUCK!!!!”

_“No!! I’m not going to cry over him!!!!! No fucking way!! He doesn’t even give a shit about me, so why should I waste a tear on him?? He doesn’t even deserve them!!!!!”_

Gavin sped up by this thought, the sights and sounds of the city blurring by as he wiped the other eye clean, free from any tears. A few cars honked at him, but he kept speeding throughout the city, only catching the names of major intersections and popular, busy streets at the last minute.

He didn’t care about anything or anyone anymore; he just wanted to keep driving and driving until the car ran out of gas…or maybe until he crashed into a wall or tree. He had no preference either way at all. He’d never cried over a man in his entire life, and now Nines-of all people-had been the first, and _only_ man he’d wept desperately for in his life, and he _hated, hated, HATED_ that it had to be Nines!

Cursing the android even more, Gavin looked up momentarily to identify where the hell he even was, and his brain and eyes told him that he was somewhere familiar; he had driven up to his own apartment complex. Unconsciously, it seemed that home had called him, and he had answered the call.

Eager to be somewhere familiar and warm, Gavin flew out the car when he parked it in the large parking lot. He didn’t care if people were after him and wanted him dead; he was at least wanted and needed here, so why would he want to ever go back to a place where he knew he was unwelcome and unwanted, much like a burden or a horrible house guest?

Fuck it. Fucking going back to Nines again.

Even the night and darkness were more welcoming, and Gavin took a moment to stare around the vicinity for a moment. He technically was home, but the ambiance strangely didn’t feel ‘homey’…had he been that badly out of touch with things??

He’d been admiring the view the street lights and glows pouring out from apartment windows high above him provided, when Gavin surveyed one last time behind himself, and he saw what appeared to be a strange, shadowy figure looming in the space and alleyway between two other large apartment complexes across from his own.

His eyes narrowed at the figure so he could make them out, but there was no way he could tell in the dark. Before Gavin could call out to them, they moved back, and soon, they were completely out of sight.

_“I’m so fuckin’ stressed and pissed that now I’m seein’ shit that’s not even there. Great.”_

It’d probably been his overactive imagination again, which meant it was time for him to get moving so he could sleep in his own room tonight.

Facing his apartment building again, he’d taken the first few steps when he remembered he hadn’t brought I.D. with him aside from his driver’s license that was always in his sweater, and he groaned angrily. His room was on the third level of the building…perhaps he could climb up the drain pipes and hope no one would call the police?? Sure, with his damn luck, he was positive someone was going to see him climbing and record it for the news and world to see while the denizens of Detroit City drowned themselves in guffaws derived sorely from his misery.

Gavin could only imagine the headlines then.

_“Famous Detective of the DPD who recently got married to the jerkweed known as Nines was discovered to be wandering in the dark of the night in a pair of shorts and a flimsy sweater while he desperately climbed up the drain pipes of his shitty apartment building at almost quarter after midnight following a domestic argument with his asshole of a husband…”_

That was definitely information the world could go without, but Gavin was still too livid to think straight. He rolled up his sweater sleeves as he stared up at the various rooms located higher up along the brown apartment building, and before he could summon up the courage to perhaps just ring for his superintendent or wait for someone else to open the doors, he saw the headlights of another car behind him.

As Gavin turned around to face whoever had approached, he groaned in anguish and misery when he saw a city cab pulling up into the parking lot. The backseat door opened, and a long leg pushed out and planted itself onto the pavement. Nines stood up tall, and when the window of the driver’s side of the cab rolled down, he threw a few bills into the car carelessly.

“Found you,” Nines ran towards Gavin as the cab drove away, leaving them both alone in darkness.

Gavin snarled, “Aren’t you late for your fucking date, Nines?”

Ignoring his verbal jab, Nines wrapped his hand around his wrist, and he began roughly dragging Gavin back towards the Cadillac. “We’re leaving right _now_ , Detective,” he growled deeply, “it’s dangerous for you to be here all alone by yourself!”

Gavin yanked his hand out of his husband’s grip. “I don’t give a shit!” he yelled from the top of his lungs, and Nines paused as he scowled.

“I said let’s go, Detective,” he made to grab Gavin again, but the shorter man shoved him aside roughly with a hand. Nines stumbled back a little, but he bounced back quickly, tearing after Gavin while the other man ran around the other side of the parking lot.

“Leave me alone, Nines!” Gavin shrieked, trying to escape the long strides Nines’ long legs were able to take, enabling him to catch up to him in no time and without much effort.

“Lower your voice, Detective,” Nines snapped, “it’s late, and people are trying to sleep!”

Gavin glared at him back over his shoulder, “I don’t give a shit about my voice and tone!” he spun around and poked a finger into his husband’s chin, “fuck off already, before I—”

Suddenly, another car drove around the side of the building in a hurry. Its windows were tinted black, and the car itself was even blacker than the night. The headlights dimmed a little, but then they flashed brightly, and it momentarily stunned both Gavin and Nines. They held their hands up to shield their eyes, and that was when the passenger window rolled down.

Gavin barely saw the barrel of a .22 caliber handgun poking out at him, and he saw that the gun had a silencer on it. A black, gloved hand shot out of the window, next, and time seemed to slow down. Shots were quickly fired, and they were very accurately aimed at Gavin. Gavin took a second to blink, and before he could turn away, Nines slammed into him.

They were both flung and thrown to the side, rolling heavily onto the pavement as the bullets sprayed and burst forth. Thankfully, due to his quick reflexes and good sense of timing, Nines was able to shield Gavin from the deadly bullets, and they fired forth at least another two times, digging themselves into the bricks of the building and breaking pieces off.

Nines pulled Gavin behind a dumpster in the alley behind the apartment complex, and as he got up to run towards the car, the driver pressed down hard on the gas pedal, and the vehicle disappeared into the night. It only left behind in its wake the loud screeching of tires as they sounded horribly in the dark night, and the putrid stench of gasoline was high in the air.

Gavin panted heavily, shaking in fear as he slowly emerged from behind the dumpster and stared in the direction the car had gone. He then looked over at the chipped bricks while bullets buried thickly and deeply within them, and he soon heard sirens in the distance, slowly approaching. He knew Nines had called the situation in, thankfully, but that still didn’t change the fact that he was angry, upset, and that he still wanted to leave, immediately.

It appeared that Nines was thinking and feeling the same way, and as Gavin made his way back towards the parking lot, Nines gripped the collar of his sweater tightly, and he dragged him back inside the car.

“We’re leaving, _now_ ,” the android snapped at him as he started up the car and drove off towards their home.

This time, Gavin was not in the mood to argue.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Once he’d made sure Gavin was safely inside his room, Nines had headed back towards the scene of the attack, and he’d stayed there for at least three hours before he drove back home. He’d been interviewed by Captain Fowler, who had in turn interviewed the building owner, a few of the people living on the first floor of the apartment, as well as a few other citizens who claimed to have heard the commotion, but hadn’t come out to check it out until they heard the police sirens.

He’d received the scolding of a lifetime when Captain Fowler told him that he was supposed to be protecting Gavin; not hand-delivering him right to the Ouroboros. Nines didn’t want to lie, so he’d truthfully told Captain Fowler about their argument…though he made sure to leave out certain ‘colorful’ details, just to protect Gavin’s feelings, and save him the cold embarrassment he would feel the next day when Captain Fowler spoke with them both. The last thing he needed was Gavin angrier at him than he already was.

To save himself from further mortification, Nines sat through several stern lectures from his superior, only nodding and speaking whenever he was addressed, and then he passed along the information of the attack to Agent Perkins of the FBI as well, just so an extra pair of eyes were on the case as well.

It was all a messy shit-show, but Nines answered questions and made reports before he headed back to check up on Gavin. It was almost three in the morning, and he knew that Gavin was still awake when he entered the mansion and saw his bedroom lights on. Realizing he’d lost a chance to head straight for his own room and enjoy some silence, Nines began ascending the stairs, and that was when Gavin’s bedroom door flew open.

When Gavin yanked his door open, he hadn’t been expecting to see Nines right before him, but when he saw the tall android gaping at him, all the anger and memories flooded back to his mind and heart. His blood heated, his stomach tightened, as his fists curled into tight balls.

“What the fuck are you doing up here?”

Ignoring the rudeness, Nines glowered at him. “Why did you go back to that apartment when you knew the Ouroboros were watching the building?”

It was a simple enough question, but for some reason, Gavin didn’t want to answer it. He shoved his way almost violently past Nines, eager and desperate to not even be in the same room or breathing space as the cruel android. The further apart they were from one another, the better. In the morning, Gavin vowed to disappear for good.

Nines thundered after Gavin, and they headed towards the kitchen quickly with Gavin in the lead. He stopped when he knocked into the kitchen table, and Nines spun him around roughly by hooking his fingers onto his shoulders.

“Don’t touch me!” Gavin shoved Nines’ hands off his shoulders, and in the process of knocking his husband’s hands down, his fingertips slid against the golden ring he was still wearing…the golden wedding rings they _both_ were wearing…

That pissed Gavin right off, and in an instant, his right hand’s fingers wove their way around the ring finger. Nines stared down at him, eyes studying what he was doing. Still, he tilted his head as he ground out, “What’re you—”

Gavin worked the ring off his finger, and in a split second, he tossed it down to the clean kitchen floor. It clanked and clattered loudly in the dimly lit area, and it rolled a few times until it landed on its side close to the white baseboard of the wall behind Nines.

Gavin looked evenly and seriously at Nines. “I want out of this marriage, Nines.”

His response was another curious head tilt, followed by a yellow LED light as Nines squinted at him. “You want what?”

“You heard me!” Gavin cried out, but he was ready to spell it out for Nines just the same. Waving his hands in the air a few times, he screamed out, “I want a divorce!”

Nines scoffed, “Don’t be ridiculous, Detective, just let’s sit down and ta—”

Gavin shook his head as he interrupted by shoving Nines aside. “Nooo, I don’t want to talk,” he spat, walking over towards the library when Nines was getting too close to him. Nines didn’t give up there, however; he relentlessly pursued Gavin, hot on his heels as they both burst through the library doors and Gavin switched the lights on.

Shelley was already in the room, and she’d been ‘napping’ on a small cushion by the large fireplace when they bulldozed in. Rising up slowly to see what was going on, she remained silent, though her light quickly switched from blue to red when she saw how livid and tense with anger Gavin was.

The irate detective walked towards the center of the room before he turned around and screamed at Nines.

“I said leave me alone, Nines!” he stood back as he resisted the urge to throw a punch at the android, “what part of that don’t you understand?!?”

“But I don’t—”

Again, Nines was interrupted by Gavin screaming overtop his voice. “No! I’ll tell you what, Nines,” he began in clipped tones, “why don’t you go and rejoice now that you’re free, and better yet; go and get another house with another fuckin’ person! Huh?? How about that??!” As pain overwhelmed him, he couldn’t help but scream out even louder, “Go and get another fuckin’ fancy house with another person! See if I fuckin’ care!”

Turning around sharply, Gavin looked around the room for something to throw at Nines to get him to back off and go away. Clearly, his words and warnings weren’t nearly enough to keep Nines at bay, and the tall RK900 merely reached for him as he sighed out, “You don’t really mean that, Detective; you’re just upset and facing intense emotions.”

This infuriated Gavin to no end. _“Oh, of course YOU would try to justify it this way.”_

“Don’t you _dare_ try and tell me how I’m feeling, Nines,” his screams knocked into the shelves and books of the library, causing Shelley to flinch and duck down for cover beneath an armchair. He wanted to scream more and scream even louder, but it wasn’t going to be enough; he didn’t wish to be contained any longer. He turned around and caught sight of a small snow globe resting on one of the bookcases, and he grabbed it, ready to fling it at Nines.

The RK900 merely stepped up to him, and he wrapped his hand around Gavin’s before he could throw the snow globe his way.

“LET ME GO, NINES!”

“Shhh,” Nines cooed, gently pushing his hand down. “Detective, please…”

“FUCK YOU, NINES! I WANT TO LEAVE, AND I WANT A DIVORCE, DO YOU HEAR ME?!” Though he struggled against Nines, the android calmly and firmly set his hand down, and he pulled the snow globe right out from his fingers and put it back on the bookcase. His hands soon wove their way around Gavin’s back, and the shorter man gasped as he tried backing away. There was no room for him to go, and he bumped the back of his legs against the bookshelf.

He still held out a hand between their bodies. “I want a divorce for the last time, Nines, and get your disgusting hands off me!!”

Nines shook his head, persisting and pressing forward. Soon, he’d trapped Gavin in an embrace, and he enveloped the smaller male in his arms. Their chests pressed together tightly, and Gavin ceased struggling, but only for a minute. His eyes went wide with fear and confusion, and as Nines draped a gentle hand on the back of his neck to pull him closer, Gavin’s fists pounded on his back violently.

He shook and trembled horribly as he sniffled out, “No, no, no, no!! Nines, I demand a divorce! I want a divorce!!!”

“I don’t want one,” Nines breathed out honestly, and due to how gentle-yet serious his tone was, Gavin’s fists gradually slowed down in the beating against his husband’s broad back. His hands eventually wove their way to the front of Nines’ shirt, where Gavin’s fingers bunched up in the fabric there. He buried his face into his husband’s chest, and he sniffled softly a few times as he shook like the last leaf on a thin, frail tree branch.

“N-Nines,” he stammered out weakly, “y-you said you w-wanted to s-s-seek out other p-people!!”

Nines shook his head, “I only said that because I was angry. I never meant it sexually or romantically, Gavin…please, calm down.”

_“He called me ‘Gavin’ again…oh god, he called me ‘Gavin’…”_

He whined as he fell privy to his own messed-up emotions, “Nines…”

Hearing the raw desperation in his voice, Nines wrapped his arms around him tighter, and he caressed the back of his head in smooth, comforting motions. “I don’t want a divorce from you, Gavin,” Nines whispered soothingly against his neck as he bent his head down and his soft, clean hair rubbed against Gavin’s cheeks and ears. “And I’m not saying this to make you feel better or just for the sake of comforting you temporarily; I mean my words sincerely.”

Even though he didn’t want to trust Nines, Gavin did. He believed him right away, and he couldn’t stop himself from reaching up and clutching the back of Nines’ shirt in his hands as he pressed their bodies even closer together and closed his eyes. His heart beat had slowed down and regulated, but the butterflies in his stomach weren’t ready to calm down anytime soon. He was a mess on the inside, but all he had was the firm, steady build of his husband before him. Gavin clung to Nines desperately while his husband hushed him and soothingly rubbed his back, and he never stopped clutching desperately at Nines while Shelley slowly emerged from her hiding spot only to observe them in silence.

Truthfully, Gavin didn’t ever want to even pull away from Nines…

Not even when his feet ached, and he was beyond tired from sobbing against Nines’ shirt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Jesus Christ...I should stop writing because I feel like I'm putting everyone through hell here...I'm sorry, but I told you things would work themselves out!😭😭😭😭🤕🤕🤧
> 
> Also, I love how Shelley's like a little kid in the middle of watching her parents fight! 😥😣  
> Don't worry, sweet Shelley, Gavin and Nines will be okay from this point on! Avixi promises!!! The worst of the storm IS over!!


	31. A New Disposition

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The start of something sweeter happening between our boys! 🌺

Gavin hadn’t had much sleep that same ‘morning’ after he’d almost exploded in front of Nines. He’d cried harder than he ever remembered crying for majority of his life, and by the time he’d been able to summon up enough energy to even blink, Gavin felt his eyes burning as though gravel or tiny rocks had been stuck in them. It was an after-effect from weeping so much, and Nines had almost pleaded and begged for him to try and get some rest after it all.

The android hadn’t let Gavin go to bed without thoroughly checking to see whether Gavin was in some sort of shock after having been shot at, of course. Appreciating how concerned Nines truly was, Gavin assured him he was fine, but Nines seemed almost reluctant to keep him out of his sight until Gavin almost had to push him forcefully back upstairs.

Nines vowed to keep a close watch on the house for the rest of the night while Gavin slept, and the weary detective had been far too exhausted to argue. If Nines was calm and ‘happy’ enough doing this, he was more than welcome to it as he pleased. Gavin retired quickly in his own bedroom with even Shelley posing as a little guard of sorts, constantly pacing his room and peeking out the windows as if fearful of some imminent danger. Eventually, she gave up on it and felt things were safe and peaceful enough, and she crawled into Gavin’s bed and nestled in a tiny ball against his chest.

Things had become a little more awkward the very next morning. Gavin had woken up roughly a few minutes before Nines, but his husband was in the shower, so all Gavin could do was use the main-floor bathroom to shave and have a quick shower as he got ready for work. Shelley observed him, commenting every now and then that he looked ‘swagalicious’ and ‘damn fine’, which he appreciated as he giggled and joked cheerfully with the Nano-Bot.

It helped lighten the mood drastically, but whenever there was a small pause, Gavin felt the familiar feeling of dread and concern overpowering him.

There was no telling what kind of a mood Nines was going to be in when he came downstairs, but Gavin was trying to prepare for anything, as unpredictable as Nines sometimes happened to be.

Luckily, Nines didn’t seem to be too upset when he entered the kitchen, and while Gavin sipped his morning coffee, Nines was drying his hair with a small white towel. Water droplets still covered his neck and his face, but he wiped those off as well. He smelled delectable and looked like a billion dollars in his casual all-black freshly ironed pants and dress shirt with a propped-up collar, but Gavin decided to keep that opinion to himself.

Shelley’s light turned red as she floated close to Nines. “Good. Morning. Ass-Bandit,” she almost spat coldly at the tall RK900, causing Nines to glare down at her in distaste while he pushed his collar down neatly.

“Mind your attitude, Shelley,” he growled sternly at her, “and please, for everyone’s sake and sanity, keep quiet!” His tone of voice seemed to shake through Shelley somehow, though she appeared angrier, now.

Eye light seething red like her emotions, she yelled out, “Make. Me!”

Nines glared daggers at her. “Who taught you to be so rude, Shelley?!”

She rose up a little, letting out a stream of ‘beeps’ and ‘boops’ that were off-tune and quite loud. It was horrifying to listen to first thing in the morning, especially considering how both Gavin and Nines seemed and appeared to be beyond exhausted.

They’d both headed to their separate rooms sometime after 4 a.m., and Gavin hated that he’d been the sole cause of that.

_“If only I hadn’t reacted the way I did…maybe then Nines would be okay with me, and maybe I’d have actually gotten my beauty sleep!!!”_

It suddenly dawned on Gavin that he had lived with Nines for nearly a full month now, yet he’d actually never even seen the inside of his bedroom…where did he even ‘rest’? Gavin was certain that Nines had a room on the second level of the house, but majority of the doors there had always been tightly shut! That clearly meant that he wasn’t allowed to snoop around in any of them, and Gavin wasn’t going to start disrespecting Nines…again. He’d had his fill last night, and he vowed to himself to quit acting like such a child and set his odd curiosities aside.

He now had confirmation and confidence that Nines didn’t want to get rid of him or seek others out, and that was good enough for him to feel so wanted and included that he didn’t know what to do with that happiness. He appreciated it and felt grateful, and he wanted to say something to Nines as the android walked around and began cleaning after Gavin in the kitchen.

Shelley wasn’t giving up, however, and she butted her head against the back of Nines’ long legs while the tall android sighed down at her. “Shelley,” he began with an exhausted tone, “as much as I can understand why you’re wanting to protect Gavin’s honor, I assure you that—”

BOOOOOOOOOOP! BEEEEEEEEP!!!! “LMFAO. IDK. STFU. GTFO. LOL. YOLO. BRB. ROFL!!!” Shelley started blurting out a stream of nonsense and acronyms, causing both Nines and Gavin to toss her panicked looks.

“What’s happening to her?!” Gavin rushed to her side as she spun around, and Nines held out a hand before him.

“She’s a bit overwhelmed; far too many emotions for her to handle,” he explained, and then pointed the way out of the kitchen, “Shelley, leave, and enter stasis, NOW.”

Upon hearing that final command, Shelley let out one last ‘beep’, and then she finally calmed down. Her light returned to soft blue, and she twitched for a moment before floating away gracefully. She was muttering to herself, still, though it didn’t appear to be as crazy and intense as before.

Still concerned, Gavin made an attempt to follow Shelley as his brows furrowed and clenched in worry and fear. “I’m going after her!” no sooner than when he’d announced his intentions had Nines gently grabbed onto his shoulder to stop him.

“She’ll be fine, Gavin,” he assured gently-yet confidently, “she needs to ‘rest’, for lack of a better term.”

Gavin felt relieved, and he realized he’d been holding his breath the entire time. Breathing in slowly, he sighed, “Whatever the heck that was, I’m glad it’s over!”

“I say it was a child throwing a tantrum,” Nines mused before he headed out through the dining room and disappeared for a few moments in his large library.

Gavin watched him return, and he stood up taller while he looked away nervously, cheeks bright pink as he stammered out, “I’m sorry about last night, Nines, I really—”

“No apology is necessary, Gavin,” Nines interrupted, and when he’d said Gavin’s first name, the shorter male blushed as he stared down between their feet shyly.

“You’re…” he felt the heat and steam rising off his cheeks, and he held a hand up to his mouth before swallowing and continuing, “…you’re using my first name a lot, Nines…has something changed?”

There was a hint of amusement in Nines’ eyes shining as he gave a small half-smile. “Well, all things considered, Gavin, you were shot at last night, and yet you choose to fixate on my use of your given name?” he snorted, though it wasn’t cruel or unfriendly, “how odd.”

Gavin shrugged apathetically, “I told you, I’m fine, Nines,” he knew he was blushing again, and he had to wonder just how many times a day Nines was going to bring this shy side out of him. Deciding to abandon that thought for a moment, Gavin replaced his mildly concerned look with one of faux confidence. “And besides,” he croaked out in exhaustion, “you forget I’ve been a cop for over a decade, Nines! This wasn’t the first time I’ve been shot at, and it certainly won’t be the last.”

A dark frown was upon Nines’ face almost instantly, and Gavin had to reel back from it. Somehow, he knew that Nines wasn’t upset with him, but he still feared the look emanating from the android. “I’d strongly prefer you _not_ being shot at ever again, Gavin,” Nines hissed thinly under his breath, “so shall we stay on the side of optimism, please?”

Gavin rolled his eyes, “Nines, I—”

Surprise came his way when Nines reached behind in the back pocket of his dress pants, and he shyly held out Gavin’s discarded wedding ring in the center of his palm. He turned his hand to Gavin, and he looked down at the ring briefly before he offered Gavin a weak smile. “Please, if you find it within yourself to be able to consider this, Gavin,” Nines began in a hushed tone, “do put this back on.”

Once again, Gavin was sure he’d been caught in a strange dream. As if to test it for himself, he pinched his cheek, and he groaned when he saw that he wasn’t asleep. Nines had indeed asked him to put his ring back on, but Gavin had to find out why.

His hand extended forward, hovering above Nines’, but before he clutched the ring, he tried meeting Nines’ eyes. The android looked at him for a moment, and his lips tightened in a firm line on his face…almost as if he’d been trying to contain something within himself.

“Why do you want me to—”

Nines sighed as he rolled his eyes, “Surely it’s not that much of a travesty to ask one’s partner to wear a symbolic item displaying their union?”

Gavin grinned as he took the ring and placed it on his finger quickly. “No, no it’s not, Nines,” he winked, “though I appreciate the drama anyway.”

Nines didn’t seem to mind his joke, and he merely folded the towel he’d used on his wet head moments ago and placed it neatly down on top of the clean kitchen table. He stared blankly at Gavin for a moment, but then a half-smile formed on his face.

Gavin felt himself blushing the longer Nines looked at him in the way he currently was. Something wriggled in the pit of the detective’s stomach, and he felt the best way to describe it was to label it as ‘shyness’. He was simply shy from the glance Nines gave him.

Wanting to escape from the situation before he either said or did something embarrassing, Gavin remembered what had started last night’s argument. He still found he had a question for Nines after all. Inching up closer to the tall android, Gavin made a mental note to try and watch his tone, and he asked, “So…um, wh-where were you headed last night anyway?” he blushed again suddenly, “you were dressed up so nicely, Nines, and I—”

“I was going to see Elijah Kamski,” Nines answered without hesitation wavering in his tone. Gavin’s eyes snapped up to his husband’s, and he felt his throat and mouth going dry. He absolutely believed Nines, but he still pushed out, “Why?”

Nines merely smiled, “Perhaps the reason will become obvious in time…”

Questions wormed their way in Gavin’s brain more because of this mysterious response, but since Nines had been so confident, Gavin trusted him and nodded at him to confirm it. It was better to leave the topic alone for now, as he’d learned that pushing Nines wasn’t the best way to deal with him at times. A gentler, more patient approach was always wiser.

“Come on,” Nines said as he moved past Gavin, “Captain Fowler no doubt has enough reason to scream at us because you failed to be circumspect from last night; let’s not give him tardiness to accumulate to that list.”

Gavin gaped at him as he then covered his mouth and frowned. “That’s actually more so _your_ fault, Nines,” he stated while Nines bustled about, finally ushering him out of the kitchen when they’d put away the dirty breakfast mugs and dishes to be cleaned by the dishwasher.

“Of that fact, I’m well aware, husband of mine…” this time, the way he’d said those three words lacked any sarcasm. Nines spoke it like an endearing tune on a warm summer’s day, and he said it as if he had really been speaking with a beloved one. What’s more was that he didn’t seem to be interested in arguing, even though Gavin knew they’d both been somewhat to blame…okay, mostly Nines!

Gavin didn’t want to admit it, but he was certain that his feelings for Nines grew even deeper and stronger when he heard how sweetly he’d caressed the words ‘husband of mine’. He was even using Gavin’s first name a lot more, and it all came as naturally as a wave of an ocean or a soft summer breeze. Gavin didn’t know how else to show his happiness aside from smiling from ear-to-ear constantly.

Nines regarded him with one of his own smiles, though it was significantly weaker, and not as bright as Gavin’s…at least for now. He motioned towards the Cadillac parked in the driveway past the screen door. “If you don’t mind, Gavin,” he said with a little grin, “I’d like to drive today…if it’s alright with you?”

Gavin couldn’t smile anymore; his cheeks really hurt.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin had been a fool to think that Captain Fowler would go easy on them. He had no idea what had possessed him to think that their hard-boiled, explosive superior was going to let them have a good, easy-going day, but apparently something had messed with his mind and foresight enough to instill that idea. Perhaps it was due to the change in the nature of the relationship he shared with Nines, now, or perhaps it wasn’t. Regardless, Gavin wasn’t too chuffed about Captain Fowler screaming his head off at them at barely 9 a.m.

“In case you are a bit behind on current events, Nines,” Captain Fowler roared at the top of his lungs, “the whole purpose behind you and Gavin marrying was to make sure you would keep him safe, and now I’m hearing that you’re personally hand-delivering Gavin to the Ouroboros as opposed to keeping him protected!?!?!? What’s gotten into you, Nines?!?!?”

They were both trapped in a tough situation. Unable to really explain to Fowler what was going on, Nines merely nodded and hung his head down, trying to keep up with the role of a subordinate who was taking the verbal lashings.

“Yes Sir,” he said softly, “it won’t happen again, Sir.”

That clearly let him off the hook for the moment, but Captain Fowler was only beginning with his screaming and rage. He then directed it towards Gavin, his face turning dark and explosive with anger.

“And _you_ , Reed!” he jabbed a finger into Gavin’s neck, practically, “the hell’s gotten into you that you need to run around like some wild animal in the middle of the night back to your damn apartment for?!?”

Staring at Nines for a moment, Gavin sighed, “I just…I just thought I had a lead on the case, Sir…”

Fowler wasn’t buying it at all. He placed his hands on his hips and shook his head. Letting out a brief snort, he spat, “Don’t bullshit a bullshitter, son,” he growled, “I don’t have the time for it, nor the patience.”

Chewing on his lower lip in disdain, Gavin knew he had to come up with another ‘reason’, quickly. He didn’t want to say Nines had argued with him or pushed him to it, however, as that would likely backfire and possibly put them both in a more awkward position of having to answer plenty of strange questions for idiotic and unnecessary Human Resources reports. But, most important of all: Gavin didn’t want to say anything bad about Nines anymore, because he saw nothing bad in the android any longer.

Where he’d once seen Nines as his annoying, moody, grating boss, he’d now shifted in his view. Now, he saw Nines as an equal; as a friend, as a confidant, a partner, but also, Gavin had to consider his personal feelings for Nines playing in the mix as well. There was no way he was going to say anything to Captain Fowler, so he merely smiled and shrugged.

“I’m sorry, Sir, but it’s truly that I was feelin’ a little homesick too…” he definitely caught the shy look Nines gave him before he glanced up at Fowler again. Captain Fowler, however, was not throwing him shy and pleasant looks. He was beyond livid; he was facing rage not unlike that of a volcano ready to go off any minute.

Both Nines and Gavin shrank back in their seats while Fowler circled them like a hungry predator eagerly waiting for them to show the first sign of weakness before he could make the killing move. When the office had gotten too quiet, Fowler stood between the chairs, and he glared menacingly out the office window at the bullpen. He wasn’t looking at anyone or anything in particular, but he was still angry. He placed his hands on his hips as he sighed wearily.

“Nines, Reed,” the two males stared up at him expectantly.

“Sir?”

Fowler kept staring outside straight ahead. “From this point onward, I expect you _both_ to get your shit together, else I’m going to have to think about putting someone else on the case, aren’t I?”

Gavin was about to mouth off to Captain Fowler, but when he saw the playful look evident in Nines’ eyes, he closed his mouth. There was just something about the way his husband was staring at him that immediately lightened his mood. He suddenly didn’t care at all if Fowler was going to insult him or accuse him of anything he could think of under the sun…not with how Nines was staring at him.

It was a look that made Gavin feel as if he was the only man left on the entire planet, and Nines couldn’t stop staring at him. To stop staring would mean to miss a second of it, and Nines hadn’t even blinked for almost a minute before Captain Fowler turned around and crossed his arms over his chest.

“Facts are that no witnesses were available to provide us with credible leads, for one,” he counted sternly and angrily, “and two, the area that the car was parked in and passed by had no security cameras, nothing. There’s no footage of who got in the car, who the driver was, and who the shooter was.”

Unable to break away from Gavin’s eyes, Nines purred out, “Yes, and the vehicle didn’t have a license plate, so there’s very little I’m afraid I can do on that matter…”

Fowler stared at his desk, completely unaware of the longing looks his two best men were giving each other right there in his office before him. “It looks like we won’t know who ordered that hit on Gavin’s head,” he explained dully, “but this should be a lesson to you _both_ , now!!”

That was when he looked at them, and he pointed a finger on each hand at them. “Nines!” the moment he’d screamed his name, the android stared up at him with wide eyes.

“Captain Fowler.”

“Don’t _ever_ let an incident like this repeat itself, or next time, it’ll be your ass _and_ job that’ll be held accountable, got it??”

Nines folded his hands neatly in his lap. “I understand, Sir.”

Satisfied with that answer, Fowler turned to Gavin, next. “Reed,” he ground out, his patience on the edge, “I’m gonna tell you this one time, son, so please get it together, and for the love of everything that you value in your life, just focus on the case!!”

Gavin smiled at him as he nodded curtly, “I will, Sir, I’m sorry.”

“Sorry ain’t gonna cut it, son,” Fowler snapped as he rubbed his bald head, “although, I must say, Reed,” he stepped closer to Gavin, eyeing him warily and nervously, “this is the first time I’ve heard you willingly apologizing to someone without them having to drag it out of you.”

Gavin hadn’t heard him; he was lost in the blue hues that were Nines’ eyes, which bore heavily into his own. Something passed between them in the eye contact alone. It was ardent, it was passionate, and it was endearing. Gavin felt moved and warmed up on the inside, and he didn’t want to stop staring into those perfectly blue eyes…but he had to, and when Fowler opened his office door for them, it was only then that Gavin realized Captain Fowler had been talking the entire time…and he hadn’t even heard the man!

“You two get on back to work,” Fowler sighed as he stood by the door, hands in his pockets as he waited for them to get out.

“Yes Sir,” Nines said obediently, tapping Gavin on the shoulder before he stood up to his full height. “We’ll be sure to let you know what we discover.”

Fowler nodded, “And I’ll let you know if something new should come out of the investigation.”

It was a done deal, and as Gavin stared at Nines with a mesmerized facial expression, Captain Fowler grabbed the back of his neck and gently spun him around. “Gavin,” the other man nearly leapt a mile into the air when his superior’s voice was right in his ear.

Studying Gavin with an odd expression, Captain Fowler shook his head at him. “Stop being so jumpy, Reed!”

“Sorry Sir,” he was blushing anyway, and Nines hid a smile behind his hand, which had been lightly pressed against his mouth as though to conceal something playful.

Fowler rolled his eyes, “Whatever coffee you’re having lately, you ought to switch to something less…” he frowned, winced, and then relaxed his face, “…you should just switch to something less strong, son…just my advice.”

Gavin snickered and saluted Fowler as he took a few steps backwards and began exiting his office.

“Will do, Sir, thank you.”

Nines gently wrapped an arm around Gavin’s waist, and this time, Fowler caught it. He sighed as he waved his hands in their faces, “Get the hell outta my sight, you two.”

The door closed on their faces, but they both caught the little smile teasing in the corner of Captain Fowler’s lips the entire time he’d stared at them.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

The next three days passed by painfully-both for Nines and Gavin-but especially for Gavin. He was ordered and confined to ‘desk duty’ and administrative tasks by Captain Fowler, as a punishment for his blatant disregard for the rules that had resulted in him nearly being shot at. He should’ve known Captain Fowler wouldn’t end it simply from yelling at him in his office; there was always more to it than that when it came to their vindictive Captain needing to make a point or an ‘example’, and that was why Gavin had been currently confined to his desk.

He walked back and forth between it and the printer, the photocopier, and the I.D. fingerprinting systems and scanners, but that was as far as he was allowed to go.

‘Administrative duties and desk duties’- nothing more, nothing less.

It initially pissed Gavin off to no end, and he grew bored with it in no time. He was so much more of a high-caliber human being than to be limited to walking back and forth to the mailroom, to his desk, to the printer, over to the front desk reception, back to his desk, to the Break Room for a coffee break, back to his desk, and then maybe to the bathroom for a tiny break. He’d grown bored out of his mind, and just when he thought he’d march up to Fowler’s office and give him a piece of his mind, he’d noticed that he was being watched.

Everywhere that Gavin went, a familiar, gentle pair of blue eyes followed him. Those eyes pursued him and left no inch of his skin untraced, and Gavin found he didn’t mind it at all…at first. In fact, he actually enjoyed having a ‘secret admirer’; especially if the secret admirer was his own husband.

Gavin also noticed that within himself, he’d recently stopped thinking of Nines as his husband in a burden sense, and now, he’d been associating the term ‘husband’ with Nines in an endearing way. When that shift had happened was a little mysterious and unknown to Gavin, but he really enjoyed it and allowed himself to think of Nines as a ‘sweet’ husband for some time.

Raoul unfortunately seemed to not want to give up on messaging Gavin throughout the days, however. He kept up with his ‘good morning’ and ‘good afternoon’ texts, and Gavin only responded to a quarter of them. He just couldn’t; not when he was fixated and growing so fond of Nines. There was still a lot about his husband that was a mystery to Gavin, and he wanted to instead focus on that as opposed to thinking about another man for even a second.

Still, that never stopped Raoul from asking about the case, asking about Gavin’s health, and even asking if he could arrange some time for them both to see each other again. Gavin came up with a few excuses and declined the offers of getting together with Raoul, putting his cellphone away as he sat at his desk and grinned in the direction Nines was walking in.

The tall RK900 had been busy with showing the new recruit androids around some more, but he kept his eyes on Gavin as he spoke to them and lectured them. Gavin found it quite adorable, and he could hardly keep the blush out of his cheeks when Nines tossed him a flirtatious smile and wink every now and then until the group had moved down the hall and out of view.

Gavin sighed as he tried getting back to work and focusing on his reports and minor tasks, but he had been interrupted by his own thoughts of Nines. No matter how hard Gavin tried shifting away from them, his mind had conjured up images and memories of Nines smiling at him, winking at him, and giving him long, warm glances that left his heart pounding like it never had before…

He sighed one more time and smiled down at his desk, completely unaware of Hank and Connor watching him. Hank held a confused expression on his face, and Connor merely smiled knowingly.

After some time, Hank shook his head and wheeled his chair back around so he was facing his work partner. “The hell is up with Reed?” Hank asked, throwing his thumb back over his shoulder as his back was still turned towards Gavin.

Connor shrugged, but kept smiling, “Who knows!”

Hank snorted, “You know very well what’s going on, Connor,” he leaned over across the desk a little, “spill the details!!”

Connor gasped and shook his head, “Hank Anderson!! Why do you think I would be so willing to share everything with you if I did know something-which I assure you I don’t!”

Hank snickered, “Because you’re the head of the gossip and rumor mill in here, Connor,” he followed this up by rolling his shoulders back coolly while puffing his chest out. “You have the ‘inside scoop’ on everything, so why don’t you ‘fess up and just tell me what’s going on with our buddy Gavin?”

With the wave of a hand, Connor brushed him off. “Stop it, Hank,” he motioned over at their messy work station, “we have other things to do!”

“I promise I’ll get to work if you tell me why Gavin’s sighing constantly lately while havin’ a weird, dreamy look in his eyes all the time!” Hank argued back, crossing his arms over his chest as he grinned like he’d won a contest.

Connor’s cheeks puffed out as he fumed at Hank, trying to suppress his rage and anger. His shoulders shook for a moment as his LED light stayed on red, but then he sighed as he slapped a hand down over his kneecap. “Come on, Hank!” he said, still mindful of the volume of his voice before he continued, “you’re acting like you’ve never seen a man deeply in love before, and it’s—”

Hank leaned across the desk even more, and his eyes widened dramatically. “Gavin’s in _love_?!?!?”

Connor paused, his eyes also turning as round and large as golf balls. “Oops…”

Hank chuckled loudly, but then caught himself when a few officers and detectives stared over at him. He clapped a hand over his mouth, still giggling as he breathed heavily through his nose.

Connor scowled at him for this. “Oh come on, Hank!” he exclaimed as he rolled up a few loose sheets of paper tightly in a hand, “you knew Gavin was developing feelings for Nines days ago, so why’s it so surprising to you now, hmm??”

Hank wagged a finger back and forth, “Nuh uh uh, Connor,” he chuckled, “we both knew that before, Gavin said he just had feelings for Nines; not that he was in love with Nines.”

“So??”

“Soooo,” Hank scratched his beard, “maaaaaajor difference, and a good development, I’d say.”

Connor smiled, “You mean a good progression.”

“Tomato potato, Connor,” Hank snickered, “same difference, right?”

Connor held out a hand, barely touching Hank’s elbow. “Just…just please don’t go around screaming it in the precinct, Hank,” Connor sighed while throwing a quick glance over at Gavin, “he’s just barely coming to terms with who he is, and he deserves the chance to figure out what he’s feeling for Nines all by himself without us interfering, okay?”

Hank was taken aback by this. His eyes widened, and he held up both hands, as if surrendering himself to the police. “Woah,” he grunted, “who’s talking about ‘interfering’??” he pointed at his chest, “I’d never do such a thing!”

Not believing him, Connor frowned at him, “Hank…”

“I swear it!”

This response still wasn’t good enough for Connor, apparently. He squinted at Hank, and then quirked up an eyebrow, “Haaaank.”

Hearing the warning in his tone, Hank sighed. “Fiiiine,” he clasped his hands together in a praying position, “cross my heart, hope to die, I won’t get involved with Gavin and Nines’ relationship, Connor.”

Connor huffed as he nodded, “Good!”

“Sheesh!”

Across the bullpen, Gavin’s work phone rang. He didn’t hear it for a moment, still casting dreamy looks at the drawing of Nines he’d still kept onto since the day he crudely drew it while Nines had been giving a lecture to his team. He’d snuck it with him after Nines had driven him home the night he’d tried running back to his apartment, and Gavin noticed that at least once every half hour at work, he’d feel a niggling sensation that demanded for him to stare at the drawing until he had his fill and got back to his tasks.

 _“I can’t believe I still have this…”_ Putting the pieces together, he saw that the ink had kind of faded, but the smile Nines had in the drawing was still fresh…it didn’t even compare to how wonderfully Nines smiled and looked in person lately, but this was something Gavin still wanted to hang onto.

“YO! REED!”

He was rudely pulled out of his daydreaming by Hank’s loud voice almost cutting through the air and slapping his ears like a baseball bat.

Gavin quickly collected his drawing, and he threw it into the first drawer of his desk. He then looked over at Hank angrily. “What is it, Anderson?!?!”

He saw Hank rolling his eyes as he shook his head. “Well I’m sorry to interrupt you there, Princess,” he snapped sarcastically, “but you gonna answer your damn phone anytime soon?”

“Huh?”

A loud ringing finally helped him catch on to what Hank was saying. As Gavin stared down at his phone close to the left-side of his laptop monitor, he nearly had a heart attack.

According to the caller I.D., he had a call coming in from ‘Family’.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shelley was the CUTEST in this! Sticking up for Gavin to the point where she got so mad at Nines that she didn't even know what to do!  
> BLESS YOU , SHELLEY! 😥💓😰😥💖
> 
> And hooooooly heck, Gavin's parents again!!!!!! 😣


	32. Resonance of a Fantasy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope, hope, HOOOOOOOOOOPE no one finds this chapter kind of weird, but I personally think it is one of the sweetest things I've written in a while! 😨😨😨😰

Not wanting anyone else to be disturbed or to complain because of the noise of the ringing, Gavin gently grabbed the phone and took it off the receiver. Turning around so he wasn’t facing the interior of the bullpen, he whispered into the speaker.

“H-hello?” he hated how small and mousy his voice was, but when he received a call like _this_ during work, he anticipated for something serious to go down.

There was silence on the other end of the line for a moment, then Gavin suddenly heard someone sigh.

“Oh, thank goodness you picked up this time, son,” it was his father, Harris Reed. Gavin had never been so happy to hear from his father so soon, but something tired and almost fed-up with everything lingered in the greeting his father had given him.

“Last time your mother and I called, your boss wasn’t too thrilled about it, but I’m happy we got through to you anyway.”

Gavin heard feminine giggling somewhere to the left, and he saw Tina Chen obviously flirting openly with Chris Miller. Meanwhile, not too far away from their desk, Hank sat with an angry and a perplexed expression as he studied a case file open on his laptop, and Connor was busy with showing off his unique silver coin trick.

He shook his head at them all as he held his phone tightly in his hands and tried keeping his voice down low. “Dad,” he began softly, “is this important? I’m kinda…busy here…” although that was a lie, Gavin preferred saying that, as opposed remaining on the phone longer and accidentally risking having one of his co-workers hearing his conversation. This was already embarrassing enough as it was, and he didn’t need more of a social humiliation to boot.

His father cleared his throat, taking the obvious hint. “Son, I’m sorry to drop this on you so quickly,” he said, clearly sounding remorseful already, “because I know we said we were going to show up on the weekend…”

Gavin knew exactly where this was going, and he was soooooo not ready for his. He held his forehead in a hand as his head hung down low, just to keep himself from collapsing down to the floor in a heap of disaster and anxiety.

“Please don’t tell me you guys are coming over tonight…please…dad…” his voice cracked as if he were a pubescent teen, “pleaseeeee!!!!!!”

His father let out a strained sigh. “Trust me son, this hurts me way more than it hurts you, but you know how your mother is…”

_“Oh boy do I ever!!!”_

“She just wouldn’t let it go, Gavin,” his father explained calmly, “I’m so sorry son, I had no choice!!”

Gavin groaned, “Stop apologizing, dad; the damage is already done. Just tell me what time you guys think you’ll be dropping by?”

His father quickly whispered to someone in the background, and Gavin assumed his mother was listening in on the conversation. He didn’t mind it a lot, however, and he heard his father then bluntly say, “We’ll be there after seven, son. Oh…may I ask for your new address, too? You know,” he laughed a tad uncomfortably, “since you’re now married and all?”

Gavin closed his eyes and rubbed his temples.

This was going to be a disaster, but he hurriedly pushed out the address, made sure his father had noted it down somewhere, and then looked for a way to excuse himself so he could tell Nines about the recent update.

Feeling agitated, Gavin stood from his desk chair, head spinning while he tried locating his tall husband. _“Mission 1: Find Nines!!”_

Gavin sped through the halls of the lower level of the DPD, pushing past androids and human officers alike while specifically getting his eyes ready to lock onto Nines.

A few times, Chris Miller, Ben Collins, and Officer Person tried holding him back so they could talk to him, but Gavin pardoned himself and hurried on past them, ignoring their confused glances. In no time, he finally located the tall android, but he wasn’t alone.

Nines was standing almost statue-like next to a water fountain in a tiny ‘circle’ of sorts, with the androids Kelly, Phil, and Dom around him. Joe was nowhere to be found, but it didn’t matter much to Gavin. Standing as close to Nines as possible, Gavin took a moment to catch his breath while throwing Nines a pleading, desperate look.

_“Mission 2: Break the news to him and hope he doesn’t freak out!!”_

Kelly beamed brightly at him, pausing in their conversation and waving, and Gavin waved back awkwardly. The raven-haired Phil had been the one leading the conversation, and he kept whispering in Nines’ ear while Kelly inched closer to Gavin.

“Hey you!” she chirped out at him in a sweet tone, “you’re looking pretty good today, Detective!”

Gavin nodded, though he had a bit of a pained expression on his face which Kelly picked up on quickly. Pointing at him, she gasped, “You okay, Detective?? You look like you’ve seen a ghost!!”

Knowing he was rather pale and no doubt sickly-looking, Gavin sighed while Phil droned on. “I’m okay, Kelly,” he answered truthfully, “I just really need to talk to Nines, because something serious just came up!”

“Oh?” she leaned into him closely, “did Nines do something bad or wrong?”

Gavin winced, understanding why she’d leapt to that assumption, but he wasn’t too comfortable with it as a whole. Sure, in the past, they’d argued and bickered so much that he couldn’t blame anyone for immediately wondering if something horrible had been brewing between them both, now. But this time, it was all different…Nines had somehow changed…

Shaking his head vehemently, Gavin whispered back, “No, Kelly, Nines has been very good to me lately.”

A smile was upon her face instantly, and it was so contagious that Gavin smiled back right away as a result. “Good!” she beamed at him again, her LED light spinning blue happily, “I’m happy things are working out for you two, because I was just telling Joe that Nines looks a lot more relaxed lately, and he’s even nicer to us all!!”

Had that ever taken Gavin by surprise.

Truthfully, he hadn’t been expecting to hear that in the slightest. He’d always thought of Nines as very well reserved, very much in control, and not one at all to show whether certain things affected him or not. But now, Kelly was admitting to him right here that Nines had changed?? That his behavior had completely taken a new turn??? No, that couldn’t simply be Gavin’s own doing!! He refused to believe it, not wanting to get ahead of himself and expect so much…it was just all too soon…

Wasn’t it??

Swallowing nervously, Gavin worked a half-smile onto his face. “Err, I don’t think that has much to do with me, Kelly,” he shrugged, then, “Nines probably is just in a good mood, that’s all!”

Snorting at this, Kelly placed a tiny hand on Gavin’s shoulder. “Detective, forgive me for saying this,” she inched up on her toes as she whispered in Gavin’s ear, “but Nines isn’t exactly known for being in ‘good moods’ all the time. I’d say this is very novel, unique, and something special had to have happened!!”

At the precise moment she’d whispered this into Gavin’s ear, Phil must’ve apparently said something amusing, for both Nines and Dom threw their heads back and laughed joyfully in unison. Gavin took a whole minute to stand by and just watch as Nines laughed.

It was a beautiful sight, honestly.

Nines had a deep, rich tone while speaking normally, and it was at least an octave deeper than Connor’s voice. In the past, Nines’ tone of voice and manner of speaking had always irritated Gavin to no end, but standing close to Nines now and just observing and listening in on him having a regular, casual conversation while laughing heartily did something else for Gavin’s nerves. It was so soothing listening to that deep rumble of a laugh, and Gavin really wanted to hear it all over again…he couldn’t get enough of it.

A light tap on his shoulder shook him back to reality, and when he turned towards Kelly once more, he found that she was giggling while pressing a hand against her lips.

Gavin smirked, “What’s funny?”

Taking a small breath, Kelly sighed, “You were staring at Nines for a while there, Detective!” she pointed out accurately while taking a small glance at Nines, “it’s kind of cute!!”

Gavin chuckled while playfully tapping Kelly on the shoulder in return. “Cute my foot, Kelly!”  

“I’d say it is!”

When Gavin stared over at Nines, Dom, and Phil once again, he saw a large digital clock looming high above their heads on the wall. Realizing it was almost 4 PM, Gavin slowly started to panic once again. He really needed to get Nines’ attention, but he didn’t want to be rude and interrupt a friendly conversation Nines seemed to be enjoying…

Kelly luckily caught the look of discomfort and pain on Gavin’s face, and she then traced it over to Phil and Dom. The two androids leaned into Nines, laughing and waving their arms about in zeal and enthusiasm as they spoke on.

Dom winked flirtatiously at Phil, “I remember when I was first deciding on whether or not to apply to become a cop, there was this little sexy—”

“Ahem!” Kelly snapped at them, forcefully pushing her way between Phil and Nines. She shoved the dark-haired android away from the RK900, and then tossed Dom a heated glare. “Sorry to interrupt you _gentlemen_ ,” she spat out with plenty of sarcasm, and it only made Gavin snicker. “If it’s okay with you all,” Kelly continued, “Detective Reed wishes to speak with his husband…alone!!” When she’d emphasized the last word, Dom and Phil took a quick glance over at Gavin while the short male was eagerly waiting.

Gavin awkwardly waved, “Hi.”

Both the androids had red LED lights as they apologized to Gavin swiftly.

With wide eyes, Nines approached Gavin, bowing his head down almost apologetically. “Were you waiting long?” he asked gently, “I dearly hope not…”

Gavin smiled sweetly at him, “No, but we’re in a bit of a pickle, Nines!”

“Oh?”

Ignoring the androids listening in on them, Gavin sighed, “My parents are coming over for dinner tonight!!”

Upon hearing that, Kelly gasped, and she collected herself hurriedly. Moving her hands up and down in ‘shooing’ motions, she ushered Dom and Phil away from Nines and Gavin. “We’ll talk later, Detective!” she called out over her shoulder at Gavin, “enjoy your day!!!”

“Thanks Kelly!!!”

When they were alone again, Nines looked around cautiously, as if he had to tell Gavin a deep, dark secret. “When will they arrive?”

“Sometime after seven.”

Nines nodded, “We have time, but I understand you may want to head out of here as early as possible so we can make our necessary arrangements?”

Gavin grinned, “Yep, that’d be wise, Nines.”

Pressing a hand gently on his shoulder, Nines had been about to steer Gavin out of the halls, when they turned and nearly slammed face-first into Connor and Hank. They’d given Gavin a bit of a fright, and he roared in anger as he felt his heart leap up in his chest. “The heck are you two doin’ creepin’ up on people like that for?!?”

With the precinct having gone a little silent as it often would in the late afternoons, matching lazy expressions crossed their way over on both Hank’s face, and Connor’s. Hank grinned playfully first, however. “You seem a bit tense, Reed,” he joked humorously, “you okay?”

Gavin groaned as he held a hand against his forehead, “Don’t ask, Anderson,” he almost found himself begging, “please, don’t ask.”

Connor beamed brightly at him, “I heard that your parents are visiting you, Gavin!!”

Nines suddenly sighed in exhaustion, “Connor, I don’t think Gavin appreciates it when you spy and listen in on his conversations,” the RK900 warned his friend as he towered over him, “please don’t do it again.”

Connor and Hank exchanged confused glances, and then Hank scratched his beard while slightly holding a frown upon his face. “Nines, you sure you’re okay in the head too?” he inquired as he snorted and stared Nines up and down a few times, “you’re calling Gavin a lot by his first name…”

His reply came in the form of Nines rolling his eyes. “What does it matter?” he hissed out, almost on the brink of impatience.

Hank was taken aback. He looked at Connor, and the RK800’s jaw hung open. For a while, they were both at a loss for words, but then Hank stumbled out with, “W-what…Nines!!” he pointed at Gavin rudely, “you were the one constantly shovin’ Gavin around and bullying him, and now you’re suddenly so quick to defend him and tell Connor not to spy??” tsking with his tongue loudly, Hank shook his head slowly, “odd, and a sudden change in your behavior, Nines.”

Not liking what they were insinuating, Gavin frowned and stepped up. “Hey!” he began angrily, “don’t pick on Nines, you guys,” he chided them both with a besmirched expression, “there are bigger things to focus on here!!”

Connor winked evilly, “Oh yeah, like your folks showing up and you both having to make the ‘best impression’ possible?”

Gavin and Nines both cringed at Connor, but they nodded simultaneously.

“Yeah,” Gavin sadly admitted, “that worries me a lot, Connor.”

Hank sighed, “Why, Reed?” he snorted, “you’re both getting along really well here from what _everyone_ in the entire fuckin’ precinct can see and—YAAARGHH!!” Hank leapt up when Connor-who was still smiling directly into Gavin’s eyes-reached up sneakily and pinched Hank hard in the center of his chest. The older Lieutenant leapt and brushed his chest off while glaring away at Connor.

Beaming joyfully at Gavin, and then Nines, Connor chirped, “He means to say that he thinks you both will be just fine!!!”

Gavin held his head in his hands. He didn’t know why, but everything ached, and the world was suddenly spinning out of control…

“I don’t know about that, you guys!” he stated nervously, and his tone was so apparent and obvious with emotions that Nines peered down at him in concern.

Placing a large hand on Gavin’s right shoulder, Nines pulled him back gently. “Are you alright?” he asked softly, but Hank and Connor heard it anyway. They snickered and exchanged knowing winks unbeknownst to Nines and Gavin.

Breathing with some difficulty, Gavin smiled weakly, though it was aimed down at the floor while he blinked rapidly. “Yeah…I’m f-fine, Nines,” he lied through his teeth, “I just need some air, I think?”

Nines wasn’t buying it. He frowned, moving back swiftly as he headed into the Break Room. Luckily, it wasn’t too far away from where they’d been standing, and while Gavin walked ahead to join Nines in the Break Room, he missed how Hank and Connor peeked in on them as well while eyeing them curiously.

Nines was too busy with making coffee for Gavin, and he dumped out the stale water, replacing it with a fresh bottle stored in the fridge. He checked the coffee filter, growling when he saw that it too was full and dirty. “I can’t believe that almost every officer and detective in this building drinks coffee, and yet no one in this damn place has the gumption to even check if the machine’s parts are in working order and ready for the next brew!!” Nines snapped out, and then stared over at Gavin. He sighed softly, “I’m not referring to you, Gavin,” he stated honestly and openly, “I’m just angry with—”

“Nines,” Gavin laughed while holding a hand out, “it’s okay, calm down!!”

Nines offered him an apologetic look, then.

“Your coffee will be ready soon, Gavin,” Nines hurriedly began bustling about, and he pulled out a chair at a table for Gavin to sit down on. Gavin obeyed silently, but he was unable to take his eyes off Nines while he waited for the coffee to be made. Once that was finished, Nines brought the steaming hot beverage over to Gavin, and he set it down before him with a tiny napkin as well.

Gavin felt himself blushing. “Th-thanks, Nines…”

The android apparently wasn’t finished, and he nodded quickly while looking around in the Break Room. “Is there anything else I can get you?” he asked softly, taking Gavin by surprise.

Ignoring Hank’s and Connor’s whispers, Gavin shook his head, “I just needed to sit down and take a moment, I think,” he answered plainly while his coffee cooled down, “I honestly haven’t ever had to introduce someone to my parents before, and I never knew how daunting it could be!!”

While Nines regarded him with extra caution and attention, Hank and Connor slunk inside the Break Room, and they invited themselves to join the couple. They pulled two chairs along with themselves, and soon, the four of them sat in silence while Gavin sipped his coffee slowly.

Hank crossed his thick arms over his chest as he smiled excitedly at Gavin. Catching the look, Nines suddenly frowned. “What’s on your mind, Lieutenant?”

Hank scoffed, “Nothing, it’s just kinda hilarious seeing how seriously Gavin’s taking this…”

Scowling up at him, Gavin spat, “Well no shit I’m taking it seriously, Hank! They’re _my_ parents, and my mom’s already in shock over the fact that I’m gay!!” He hadn’t bothered with hiding that anymore, and thankfully, not too many officers and the rest of their co-workers had been hanging around to hear the outburst anyway. Still, if they were even there or not, Gavin found he didn’t give a crap. He really had bigger worries on his mind than what his co-workers thought of him.

“Gavin,” Connor lightly started, “we do understand how important this is for you, but you have to keep a level head for now, else you’ll only end up making it worse for yourself.”

Suddenly diving into the conversation, Nines growled protectively, “Don’t blame him! He has every right to feel this way!!”

Taken aback by how sternly Nines had snapped at him and attacked him, Connor gasped, “I wasn’t trying to suggest that Gavin was doing anything wrong, Nines! What’s gotten into you?”

The question seemed to make Nines tense, and then freeze up. It was almost as if he hadn’t been aware of what he was doing, and as he blinked a few times in shock, Hank snorted and whispered to Connor, “I think Gavin’s gotten _into_ him, if you know what I mean…”

Connor quickly whispered back, “I don’t think they’ve had se—”

Gavin slammed his mug down roughly in the center of the table, “You guys!! This isn’t helping my nerves!!!”

Snapping to attention, they all sat up like sticks rising out of the ground, and Gavin finally drank down the rest of his coffee. Pushing the mug aside, Nines collected it, and then asked, “Do you feel better now?”

Gavin only gave him a half-smile, “Not emotionally; I’m still a mess,” he admitted bluntly, “you don’t know my parents, Nines! They can be a bit uptight, especially my mother!!”

“That’s literally _every_ mother on the planet, Reed,” Hank assured him, “I remember when I told my mom I wanted to propose to my wife, well,” he chuckled as his eyes shined while he reminisced fondly, “well, let’s just say she had a cow, alright?”

Chewing on his lower lip, Connor groused, “And they never lived happily ever after…”

And _how_ in the name of God was this information helpful???

Groaning, Gavin felt even worse about that. However, he didn’t want to waste time sitting around and thinking up possible scenarios of things going wrong; they had to be positive, constructive, and as they had a little under an hour worth of time left before they could leave, they had to at least come up with a logical way to work this all out!

Turning to Nines desperately, he breathed out, “What do we do?”

His calm and logical husband only smiled, “I have an idea that may help you get the anxiety out of your system, Gavin,” he stated softly, “but you have to promise me that you’ll at least attempt this, no matter how silly it may be…”

This caught Gavin’s attention. Sitting up straight, he nodded, “Alright, try me!”

Nines smiled over at Hank and Connor, “Has anyone here ever acted out a scenario?”

Hank scratched his beard, and it made an irritating sound. “You mean like almost a dramatic play, thing?”

“Yes.”

Gavin rolled his eyes and shook Nines by the arm, “Be serious, Nines!! How’s this going to help me?!?”

“Please be patient, Gavin,” Nines held up a hand, and while everyone watched him, he moved back towards the kitchen counters, and he swiped off its surface a large poster.

He handed the poster to Hank and started pacing around the table they all sat around. Before Nines could speak, Hank waved the poster at him, “So what’s this, Nines?”

Nines smirked, “Your menu.”

“My _menu_???” Hank exchanged confused glances with Connor, who shrugged while half a grin was on his handsome face.

“Imagine this is a four-star restaurant Gavin has reserved for the evening meal and celebration of his parents’ anniversary,” Nines suggested, and it made Gavin blush, but then his mouth was open in a small ‘o’ shape while he slowly thought of reasons why they had to do this.

He turned to his husband. “Nines?”

“Patience, Gavin,” Nines hummed, and then he stood by Connor. “You play the role Gavin’s mother,” he stated gently, a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips, and then he pointed at Hank, “you can be Gavin’s father.”

Hank snickered, and then playfully winked at Gavin, “You hear that, Reed? I’m your ‘daddy’!”

“Shut the hell up, Anderson,” Gavin spat in disgust.

Nines then leaned down and pulled on Gavin’s arm. “Up, up!”

After resisting a little, Gavin eventually rose to his feet. He held a pained expression on his face, but Nines slid a hand beneath his chin. “Smile, Gavin,” he encouraged vehemently, “pretend this is indeed truly happening in real time; there is no need and no way for you to absolutely feel out of place and mortified!”

Gavin nodded weakly, but Nines held up a finger, “Promise me you’ll play your role and practice?”

Turning his eyes towards Hank and Connor, who were patiently waiting for him, Gavin huffed out, “Fiiiine, I promise.”

Nines smiled in pride, “Very well!” he then turned Gavin to face the head of the table. “You’re playing the role of yourself, of course, and I’ll be your waiter for the night posing as myself…”

While everyone got in their rightful position, Nines placed both of his hands on Gavin’s shoulders, and he massaged the detective soothingly. “Close your eyes now, and imagine dining at one of the most luxurious restaurants in town…close your eyes and listen to the sounds of utensils tapping, hitting, and scraping along fine dishes and silver plates served for only the best…” Nines must’ve moved, for now, his voice came from somewhere close to Gavin. “Soothing music, heavenly lights, laughter aplenty, and nothing short of sheer joy and pleasure is provided in abundance.”

With Nines’ voice so softly grazing his ears, Gavin relaxed, and he obediently closed his eyes.

They got to their play-acting, with Connor giggling and acting a little feminine, while Hank smiled at Gavin and gave him a thumbs-up sign. It helped lighten the mood drastically, but Gavin eventually found himself genuinely pretending these were his parents when he kept his eyes tightly shut…

He imagined a lovely assortment of good meals offered to them upon the table while Nines lead them to their table. Nines had certainly outdone himself. In Gavin’s imagination, he had reserved the most suitable seats in the entire restaurant. Closing his eyes for a moment, Gavin saw it all right before himself. It would be a fancy, well-reputable place that was crowded with dozens of happy patrons. Lovely music and dance would be the entertainment and festivities while the aroma of high-quality food being prepared floated high above the heads. Right behind their seating arrangement would be a beautiful indoor mini-waterfall and pool, filled with beautiful, colorful fish which resembled every color of the rainbow. Their scales were shining out of the water and glimmered all over their seating area.

The tables and chairs of their area was specifically set for four; it seemed like a serene, peaceful seating arrangement in Gavin’s mind. The booth was circular, and quite separate from the rest of the patrons in the restaurant. And in front of it was a small bar with drinks specifically ordered for them by Nines.

When Gavin imagined looking at look at Nines, he found that the android would be wearing a top-quality black suit with a lovely black tie while expensive cufflinks gleamed in the candlelight.

“Please be seated, Mr. and Mrs. Reed, and I will assure you that your son and I will no doubt lavish the best attention unto you at such a lovely moment in your lives,” Nines the waiter would say, and Gavin’s father would then stare at his menu while Gavin sat before him and threw his father a small smile. His parents were dressed the best, and they all suddenly seemed to really fit in with the ambiance and atmosphere of the fancy restaurant.

“Take all the time you like to begin ordering,” Nines the waiter was nothing short of kind, soft-spoken, had tact, poise, and would impress his parents for sure. Gavin felt confidence seeping into his body slowly, and he felt his soul stir while he beamed across the table at his father.

“Dad? What are you ordering?” Gavin inquired as politely as he could. He felt Nines standing beside him as he eagerly waited for Gavin’s parents to select their meals.

His father hummed gently, and it made Gavin suddenly miss being younger and at home…such memories.

The menu closed, “I will have whatever my son-in-law suggests…”

Nines felt delighted to step in. “I recommend the Fegatelli di maiale, which is pig’s liver forcemeat stuffed into pig’s stomach and baked in a slow oven with stock and red wine. Absolutely delicious, Mr. Reed.”

Nines’ tongue rolled around the perfect Italian pronunciation, making Gavin feel dizzy. His body was reacting strangely-in a good strange way-to Nines’ accent the more the android spoke. How was it that Nines was so skilled in practically everything that centered on lighting Gavin’s nerves on fire?? That deliciously sweet fire pooled in his chest, and in no time, it made its way down to the pit of his belly. He felt hungry as well, though it wasn’t just for the food alone…

His father happily agreed with Nines’ suggestion, and now, Nines turned his white smile that was all-teeth towards Gavin’s mother.

“And what will you have, Mrs. Reed?” Nines asked, waiting for Gavin’s mother to finish studying the menu. He was patient with her as well while she delicately searched through the lists of meals.

She eventually chuckled, “I’m clearly not as big of a carnivore as my husband appears to be, Nines...”

They would share laughter happily for minutes, and it was such a warm, inclusive environment. Gavin found he couldn’t stop sharing in the rounds of familial laughter, and he inched closer to Nines, knowing he’d been the one to make them all so proud and happy…

Finally, Nines studied the menu next to Mrs. Reed. She looked down at the menu and decided to try another option while Gavin searched through his own. Instead of embarrassing himself in front of Nines with ridiculous attempts at poorly pronounced Italian, he would get Nines to do the work and only name the prices he could afford to pay.

His mother soon cooed out, “I can only see myself having something light and delicate, Nines. Most of the vegetable soups are looking that way for me, and I think you can treat me to one of them, but I’ll pay!”

Nines smiled. “Funny how you assume I am not going to get in the way of you wanting to pay for your own meal.”

Mrs. Reed raised an eyebrow, “Is that so?”

“Yes, it is, Mrs. Reed,” he purred delightfully, “anyway I highly recommend the Pasta e fagioli - a soup of pasta and beans. It’s not too heavy, and I daresay, you will find it quite delectable.”

She practically glowed in excitement as she clapped her hands together while her husband swished his wine about in his shiny glass.

“Great, I’ll have that as well, as an appetizer,” Gavin finally agreed when all eyes were on him. Now that he’d selected his meal, he closed the menu while trying to keep his heartbeat to a steady rhythm as he listened carefully to Nines’ perfect Italian pronunciation.

The image suddenly wavered and shook, and like water pouring over glass, the illusion disappeared. He was waking up, and he opened his eyes very slowly, as though trying to hang onto the last happy image of both his parents talking to his husband with excitement and zeal displayed on their faces.

Gavin’s parents were soon replaced by Hank and Connor, who were smiling as though Gavin had awarded them each with a million dollars. He wiped his eyes, and he almost wished he had his parents back…

“Gavin?”

He turned to his side, where he found Nines warmly smiling down at him in nothing short of pride. Gavin couldn’t wait until his parents gave him almost identical stares; it would be so worth every bit of effort.

“You did very well,” Nines informed him, “what say we replicate that to the best of our abilities for tonight?”

Gavin could only smile in return.

Yes, he truly felt they could pull this off, but he knew he would only be successful with Nines by his side the entire evening.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nines was soooooooo sweet to try and get Gavin to relax and just be himself in a unique way!!!! Sometimes play-acting helps me as well, which is why I tried working it into this fic, but I hope people enjoyed it and didn't find it strange!!!


	33. Unbreakable Foundation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: Nines' new hairstyle in this chapter resembles Leon Kennedy's from Resident Evil 4 and 6 ;)

Nines and Gavin hurried home almost driving well over the speed limit, but they both didn’t care. Their shift had ended later than they’d both expected, and there was hardly any time to get ready for the upcoming visit from Gavin’s parents. Everything had been so sudden, and time literally was slipping through their fingers.

Gavin hated being rushed! This was exactly what had started his fight with his sister way back when she informed the family of her plans to wed to her fiancé. Gavin remembered being at work that same day when he’d received the calls. Since they were all from ‘family’, he’d ignored them initially. He’d told his family that work calls had always been his priority, and family had to come second while he was on the job. Still, his sister persisted, and Gavin had to beg Fowler to get out of work half a day early.

By the time he’d raced home, he’d landed himself a speeding ticket, a pissed off mood, and he’d almost lit himself on fire when he tried smoking before entering the house.

To top it all off, Gavin had to meet his sister’s creepy fiancé; a man he hated from the moment he laid eyes on him. Stress and being pushed or rushed never did well for Gavin Reed, and he remembered lashing out at everyone that night. His sister cried, his mother sobbed along with her, soon, and his father merely shook his head sadly as he advised it would be better for Gavin to just leave until things calmed down.

What an experience.

But this time, things seemed different.

Gavin didn’t know what it was, but something about how gentle, calm, poised, collected, and soothingly Nines spoke to him did wonders for his nerves. Without even trying, Nines had significantly calmed his husband down enough for them both to gather their personal belongings and head out to the parking lot.

Gavin informed Nines that he was too high-strung and nervous to drive, and Nines didn’t hesitate for a moment to take the car keys from him and gently aid him in sitting down in the passenger’s seat. Nines was a wonderfully calm and relaxed driver even when battling against time, Gavin discovered. He simply paid full attention to the road while Gavin cried out in a panicked voice that he had no idea what they were going to do and how they were to go about preparing the house for the arrival of his parents.

Nines sat calmly through it all, and he constantly fed Gavin words of encouragement while he assured him that they would make it a great night. Nines’ confidence overpowered Gavin’s, and soon, the other man found himself giving in. Nines was just so…so serene and gentle, that Gavin felt calm simply sitting next to him in the car. This was what he’d been lacking majority of his life; someone who balanced out his craziness, his heated emotions, his high-strung nature, and someone who would be able to remind him to be calm and take care of himself. Nines was constantly and consistently doing that while they approached their street, and Gavin hung on every word with emotions sweeping over him and potently taking a hold over his heart and soul.

He felt more relaxed now, and he really had to thank Nines for his patience, his grace, and his gentleness. Emotionally, he felt at ease, but he knew they still had a lot of work to do yet.

It was almost six when they came home, and they didn’t spare another moment. They both changed quickly out of their day-clothes, and while Gavin ran around upstairs in his bedroom, eagerly and desperately trying to find something good and appropriate to wear, Nines burst in as well, nearly giving his husband a full-blown heart attack as he’d been in the midst of yanking down a fancy dark green polo shirt and black dress pants from his closet shelf.

“Gavin!” Nines cried out frantically, “what’s your mother’s favorite dish?”

Gavin’s mouth hung open before Nines’ question clicked into his brain. “Huh??”

Nines growled impatiently, “Your mother! What’s her favorite meal??”

Finally getting it, Gavin nodded, “Oooh! She likes lasagna, Nines, why?”

Nines huffed, “We’re going to have lasagna tonight, then.”

If Nines hadn’t impressed him already with the change in his behavior, mood, and attitude as of late, this was another shining moment displayed from the android. Gavin beamed at him with an air of pride, and he felt his neck and cheeks heat up as he stared at Nines with a vacant expression on his face.

Nines caught the look, and he frowned as he shook Gavin slightly. “I need your assistance, Gavin,” he gently grabbed Gavin’s wrist and began dragging him down to the kitchen. Nines’ hold on his arm was gentle, but the colors of the walls and floors still swarm around him while Gavin trained his eyes on the back of his husband’s neck.

He let go of Gavin’s wrist once they were at the large kitchen island, and Nines began hurriedly pointing at cupboards and shelves, while Gavin put on a cooking apron.

“I do believe I have a jar of good home-made Italian sauce,” he said softly while he himself began searching for it. “See if you can find a decent-sized pot over there from the rack!”

Obeying him, Gavin stood up on his toes, and he pulled out the largest and fanciest Greek-styled pot for the noodles, and he then grabbed another tray for the actual lasagna to be laid out in. He hoped he’d picked a good one (plus a frying pan to roast the garlic, onions, and mushrooms in) but Nines didn’t have time to check. He’d already set down the jar of Italian sauce, and as soon as he pried open the lid, Gavin salivated when he smelled the beautifully fresh aroma of the tomatoes.

“Mmmm, I can’t wait to eat this, Nines…” his stomach rumbled as well, as if agreeing with his words spoken a second ago, “I just know this’ll be good!!”

His husband smirked at him as he began opening the packages of lasagna noodles. “You give me far too much credit too soon, Gavin,” he filled the pot with warm water, “I’ll ask you to grade me on my culinary skills at another time when I’m not as pressed for time, and therefore more likely to underperform.”

 _“You? Underperforming??? As if!!”_ He thought to himself, _“You’ve always been perfect, Nines…every little thing you say and do…it’s just perfection.”_

Chuckling a tad nervously, Gavin grabbed a clove of garlic and some onions from a bowl next to the fridge. “That moment can be any time though, Nines,” he grabbed a knife and slowly began chopping the garlic in tiny portions, “best be prepared for it!”

“Ahh, you see,” Nines pointed at his cutting, “you’re involved now in this now, Gavin, so there’s little I can do to claim this dish as entirely my own preparation…”

Gavin playfully elbowed Nines when he came to stand beside him. “You’re doing well,” Nines commented as he turned on the stove burner and heated up the pot filled with water.

“Thank you, thank you,” Gavin hummed, placing the chopped onions and garlic into the frying pan. He grabbed a wooden cooking spoon before he looked over at the wide variety of spices, cooking oils, and seasonings. Nines had already gotten to work on selecting basil and coconut oil, and he opened the cap of the bottle, ready to pour it into the mix. Before he could, however, Gavin read the label on the bottle at the last minute, and he grew pale with fear.

Gavin winced, and he held out a hand before the bottle. “Woah, Nines!” he smiled weakly, “I think we should reconsider the coconut oil, please…” he hoped he wouldn’t offend his husband, but Nines merely huffed and gently lifted his hand so it was above Gavin’s.

“Nonsense, Gavin,” he tilted and tipped the bottle lower, ready to pour its contents into the frying pan, “it is often stated that coconut oil is a lot healthier in cookery than olive oil, so I feel this is an appropriate and wiser choice!”

Gavin disagreed. He knew his mother better than Nines did, and she had a very, very picky tongue when it came to her lasagna. There was no way she was going to eat and accept the food with the coconut oil. But again, there had to be a gentler and sweeter way to say this to his husband…

Blinking flirtatiously at Nines, Gavin made his way behind the android, and he began untying the knots Nines had made to hold up the cooking apron around his torso.

“What’re you doing—”

Gavin held him in place as he quickly took off the apron and folded it neatly. “Shh,” he smiled kindly at his husband, “I think you should go upstairs and have a shower now, and I’ll handle the rest of the cooking, okay?”

Sighing, Nines knew he had been defeated. He backed away from Gavin as he frowned lightly at him, though it wasn’t an unfriendly frown. “Very well, Gavin,” he murmured, “I’ll be back soon.”

Gavin waved at him, “Don’t worry, dear!”

All too quickly, Gavin turned back to monitor the food. Unfortunately, due to turning around so fast, he’d missed how Nines’ expression softened, and his LED light flashed yellow, and then blue. Nines held up a hand as though he’d wanted to add something in, but he changed his mind at the last minute.

Moving along hurriedly, he whispered something under his breath, but Gavin’s ears couldn’t catch what it was.

Once he’d been left alone, Gavin sighed in relief as he grabbed the coconut oil and threw it back onto the spice and oil shelves. Turning over again to the pan before him on the stove, he rubbed his hands together and gleamed down at the food ingredients.

Now, he was able to make a proper meal, and he just knew his parents would love it.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

“REEEEEEEEED!!!!!!!” Nines’ loud, angry voice had called out Gavin’s last name-a clear sign that he was beyond furious with Gavin-while the bathroom door slammed open and banged against the walls upstairs.

Setting down the cooking book that he’d been reading while the lasagna had been slowly preparing in the oven, Gavin straightened himself up on the stool he was seated on as Nines’ heavy footsteps thumped down from the second level of the house. He practically jogged until he was inside the kitchen and a few feet away from Gavin, eyes and red LED light painted furious shades with anger. Not too far away behind him, Shelley hovered in, her eye-light glowing lime green. If Gavin had to wager, he thought she was in a smug mood.

Eyeing his husband, next, Gavin threw him a confused look, “What’s going on, Nines?”

Nines sneered viciously, “Reed, I know I helped you update the Nano-Bot to become more ‘relatable’ and empathetic for you, but I don’t _ever_ recall giving you instructions on teaching her how to say ‘sup bruh’ to me!!!!!!”

Gavin hid the laughter threatening to escape out of him behind a hand, though it had already burst forth. Nines remained furious with him; bits of water dangling from his bangs while a white towel hung and was looped around his neck. He crossed his muscular arms over his chest, and he’d barely been able to button up the first few buttons of a white dress shirt while black pajama pants hung loosely over his strong hips. His smooth, white skin practically glowed in the kitchen lights, and Gavin had to turn away from the sight of it for a moment. His cheeks were still bright pink, but before he could comment on what Nines had said, Shelley floated deeper into the kitchen and hovered by Gavin.

Her light flashed bright green once again, and she purred. “Hey. Sweet. Cheeks. What’s. Good?”

Gavin waved at her while smirking, “Nothin’ much, doll, how about you?”

“Reed!” Nines warned, eyes glowering dangerously at Gavin, and then at Shelley.

“Relax, Nines,” Gavin sighed, “she’s just bein’ herself, now, and I can’t stop it!”

Nines held up a finger, ready to argue back, but then Shelley cocked her head curiously at him and circled his legs.

“Boy. You. Better. Take. A. Chill. Pill,” even her voice had more color, a wider range of emotions, and it rose and fell, almost like a human being’s would while they expressed themselves.

Nines’ upper lip curled back. “Reed…” he growled lightly, but Shelley wasn’t done yet.

Her light flashed orange, and she let out a harsh, clipped ‘beeep!’, “I. Don’t. Have. Time. For. Your. Negative. Vibes. So. Unless. You. Can. Bring. On. The. Swag. I’m. Going. To. Say. Hashtag. Girl. Bye.” With all that said, Shelley spun around, and she hovered out of the kitchen without even peeking back at Nines or Gavin.

When she was gone, Gavin finally exploded in rounds of boisterous laughter, unable to stop himself-even after Nines snarled at him.

“I fail to see how it’s amusing, Gavin,” Nines hissed, though he was already a little more relaxed now, “you taught her that nonsense.”

Gavin shrugged, “I know! And I’m proud of it, too!”

Peeking over at the clock on the wall, Nines sighed. “It’s nearly seven, my annoying husband.”

Gavin gasped and peered over at the clock to confirm it for himself. “Shit! You’re right!!” he got off the stool, grabbing Nines’ hand tightly in his own.

The android threw him a confused look. “Gavin? Where are we going?”

Dragging him out of the kitchen swiftly, Gavin smiled as they went up the stairs. “We need to get you properly dressed, Nines,” he said plainly, “and besides…I’ve yet to even see your room…” there was a small blush pooling in his cheeks when he said that, and Nines swallowed nervously, though he didn’t comment back. He allowed Gavin to pause at one of the many doors that were often closed on the second floor.

“So,” Gavin held out his hand, “which of them is your room?”

He then saw what was akin to a very embarrassed look upon Nines’ face, but then the android pointed at the door on the right. He walked over to it; his hand still clasped in Gavin’s. “This one is it…I…” he looked down at the floor shyly.

“…I’m sorry I didn’t show you before, I just thought—”

Gavin shook his head, “Come on, Nines, we don’t have a lot of time.” They could deal with the other set of issues later, but for now, Gavin wanted to not only take a peek inside his husband’s bedroom, but he wanted to also help him get dressed.

Nines nodded and pressed down on the door handle, and he gave the door a gentle shove with his shoulder. As soon as the door swung open, Gavin gasped in surprise. For whatever odd reason, Gavin had been expecting to see a dark room with practically no furniture. However, what he was met with was the complete opposite.

The bedroom had pastel green walls and grey baseboards. The floor was decorated with grey and white Mosaic and designer ceramic tiles. A King-size bed with violet-colored sheets sat in the far-right-hand corner of the room, and a small glass case bearing an obelisk and a single pyramid model was just beyond the bed.

Gavin went over to admire it, and Nines followed, his reflection and LED light clear as day in the display case. “That is a model of Amenemhat the third’s Pyramid, from the Faiyum,” he explained with zeal, “the most impressive pyramids of ancient Egypt date from the Old Kingdom, and were often found on the sites of Giza, Saqqara, and Dahshur. During the Middle Kingdom, some pharaohs chose the Faiyum as their final resting place, and one such ruler was Amenemhat the third. Such a mark on the imagination the pyramid leaves, no? It’s a model of the old labyrinth.”

To the left of the bed and away from the Egyptian display was an old Samurai armor set propped on a mount. It was stored within a glass barrier, and Gavin gaped at it as he walked inside the room.

On the shelves across from the bed and the armor were all kinds of ancient artefacts from around the world dating from the medieval era, ancient Egypt, and Greece. A large, old globe stood by the black dresser, and Gavin gently ran a hand along it before he was drawn once again to the Samurai armor set. He stood before it, a hand pressed against the glass case, and he saw Nines coming up behind him in the reflection of the glass.

“It’s ō-yoroi armor from the Metropolitan Museum of Art,” he explained in a soft, gentle tone, and Gavin smiled at him. He found he adored how cultured and well-versed in history Nines appeared to be.

Chuckling, Nines purred out, “I couldn’t help but notice it caught your eye…”

Truthfully, Gavin was trying very much to conceal the spike in arousal when he heard how sweetly and elegantly Nines had spoken out the Japanese names for the armor. Something about the fact that his husband knew how to speak multiple languages drove Gavin insane with desire and want. He found he was discovering a lot of interesting things that drew him closer to Nines, but unfortunately, this wasn’t the right time nor the right place to continue in his explorations…

He turned around and smiled at Nines, grabbing the towel still looped over his neck. “Yes, it’s very lovely, and I had no idea you’d keep things like this in your room.”

Nines quirked an eyebrow, “Do you find me strange to do so?”

Gavin chuckled while he shook his head back and forth, “Nope,” he motioned over at the large dresser, “do you find me strange for not finding it strange that you do this?”

“Brat,” Nines hissed, though it seemed more playful than bitter. He allowed Gavin to rummage through his drawers until he’d located a clean pair of black dress pants, black dress shoes, and a brand-new black tie to go along with the white dress shirt.

Approaching quickly, Gavin stared at the top of Nines’ skull, and then he hummed as a thought occurred to him. “Hang on…” he inched up on his toes with his arms stretched out for a moment, and then his eyes widened.

“Got it!!”

He ran towards the bathroom, yanking out of the vanity drawer a comb, hair spray, and hair gel. When he joined Nines back in the bedroom, he hurriedly combed down bits of Nines’ bangs after dividing the hair part as evenly as he could. It leaned more to the right, and Gavin combed the longer bits down evenly. Within minutes, Gavin had fashioned Nines’ sleeked-back hairstyle into a brand-new style that was rather…intense. Nines now had his bangs spread down over his temples and forehead, and only a small portion of his forehead showed. Gavin sprayed the bits firmly in place, making sure they wouldn’t budge as he combed and gelled back the rest of Nines’ hair neatly.

Proud of his work, Gavin pushed Nines before his dresser mirror. “Taaddaa!!” he sang out cheerfully, and Nines smirked.

“Well done.”

Pulling Nines away from the mirror to study him again, Gavin sighed. Realizing that the white dress shirt Nines had on was still unbuttoned, Gavin’s fingers automatically flew down to the buttons, and slowly, he buttoned each and every one of them while Nines stared at his hands. Soon, a small grin worked its way onto his face, and Gavin felt a little self-conscious.

“What??”

Nines snickered, “You have nice hands.”

Gavin snorted, “That’s one I haven’t heard before, chin up, please!” He placed his index finger beneath his husband’s chin, and his heart leapt in his chest when he felt how chiseled and well-built Nines’ face was.

_“If this is how his face feels like, I wonder how the rest of his body would feel like…”_

Gavin nearly slapped himself for having such lewd thoughts, and he kept his head down as he blushed. He could feel Nines staring at him, and he huffed as he turned around and grabbed the tie from its package. Once he’d made sure the white dress shirt was fully buttoned, Gavin stretched out the tie, and he draped it over the back of Nines’ neck while fighting to keep a hold of himself so he wouldn’t focus on his husband’s blue eyes.

He’d been doing well as he silently and quickly began crossing the wider end of the tie over the narrow end, and he draped it straightly across Nines’ chest. He felt eyes on him, and he looked up, but his eyes fell onto his husband’s lips. Those lips were a great tease for Gavin the moment he stared at them. They weren’t too thick or to plump, and they weren’t the straight, thin lines he’d always assumed and imagined them to be; they were perfect. Their color, shape, texture… everything was perfect, and it begged him to just lean into those bow-shaped lips so he could finally claim them…

With trembling hands, he looped the wider piece beneath the narrow one carefully, eyes still on his husband’s lips. They were so close…too close, but Gavin didn’t mind it at all. In fact, he wanted and needed to be closer, but there was nothing he could except stare. He hardly blinked; scared he would miss the moment and then be left with nothing.

He’d made sure the wider end was looped once more neatly, and making sure the seam of the tie was hidden and facing the front, Gavin finally pulled up the wider piece of the tie to make the knot, and he finished by inserting it down the loop and gently tightened it around his husband’s long neck. When he was finished, he stared up at those blue eyes, but they were already looking seriously into his own.

_“Has he been staring at me the whole time???”_

Gavin stepped back for a moment, ready to admire his handiwork, but then his shoulders were grabbed firmly, and he gasped as his face was inches away from his husband’s. Nines was staring intently at his mouth-so much so that it made Gavin’s breath hitch in his throat. He saw a hand wavering away from his shoulder, shaking as it made its way over to cup his left cheek.

Swallowing nervously, Gavin blinked, but only out of necessity when his eyes began burning and stinging. He reminded himself to breathe as Nines stared at his chin, his lips again, and then into his eyes. Gavin noticed that Nines had taken half a step closer to him, too, and he’d tilted and leaned his head down a little.

_“Nines…”_

Everything happened naturally from there on. Gavin’s eyelids slowly closed shut, and Nines’ hands wove their way to the back of his head, gently running through his hair and over his scalp as he leaned in closer to Gavin. Their bodies practically meshed together, and Gavin took a breath in, his ribs hitting Nines’ chest. It felt so wonderful and right, and Gavin wanted to feel it over and over again.

It was his turn to take a step closer, and as he did, Nines stroked his chin softly. It took all the self-control Gavin had not to moan loudly, but he found himself slowly running his hands up Nines’ abdomen and over his chest, and his hands eventually found their rightful place on his shoulders. Hooking his fingers there, Gavin leaned up closer into Nines.

Gavin’s throat constricted as Nines moved closer, and there was something primal and urgent in the depths of the android’s blue eyes that Gavin didn’t quite understand. It was almost as if…as if Nines desired to kiss him…

Gavin was both horrified and exhilarated to find himself reacting to that thought and their unexpected proximity. The deep, possessive growl coming from Nines’ lips and throat made him shiver, and they were so close, that there was no way of missing the growing hardness in Gavin’s trousers or the way his breath shook from between his lips. No, Gavin couldn’t even ignore the way his body trembled with arousal as he anticipated what was to come, next.

Pressed up against a wall with the sinuous pleasure of Nines’ body against his own, heat flooded Gavin’s cheeks and he barely stifled a groan. Surreptitiously glancing up, he saw it; the moment Nines understood Gavin’s bodily reaction. His eyes widened and pink spots rose in his light-colored cheeks. His lips twisted in pleasure, and he pressed forward, spurred on by the heat of desire pooling between his body and Gavin’s.

Before their lips could touch, the doorbell downstairs suddenly rang, and Gavin and Nines sprang apart from each other. Nines nearly collided with an expensive statue recreation of the goddess Hestia. The statue swung about on its lectern, but Nines held it back in place while Gavin turned around and fanned his burning red face with a hand.

Inside, he was a complete mess.

_“OH MY FUCKING GOD, YOU CAN’T BE SERIOUS!!!!! COCK-BLOCKED BY MY OWN PARENTS?!?!? WHAT THE ACTUAL FU—”_

Sighing, Nines looked at the chair that held his dress pants and shoes. “They’ve arrived…”

Gavin nodded, looking utterly disappointed. “Yeah…umm, you should put those on,” he pointed at the rest of the clothes, peeking back at Nines’ hips that were visible as his loose pajama pants slid down a little.

Repressing an aroused shiver, Gavin ran a hand through his hair as he exited Nines’ bedroom. He needed to firstly wash his face, calm the fuck down, and then look into a mirror to see if he was even remotely presentable before he welcomed and greeted his parents in.

It was finally time for his husband to meet the parents.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Runs for the hills for the ruined moment, the cock-blocking, and the cliff hanger*
> 
> Plz...don't kill me...
> 
> I beg 😭😭😭😭😭


	34. What Dreams May Come

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> MEET THE PARENTS, NINES!😭👀👀👀

 

With trembling and unsteady hands, Gavin finally managed to open the front door of the mansion for his parents. They stood there on the front doorstep just as he’d last remembered them, and that both warmed up his heart, and chilled it like the worst feeling ever.

Gavin’s father smiled at him, and in a second, he ran forward and wrapped his arms around his son. Slapping him on the back gently, he chuckled and then let out a pained sigh while Gavin’s mother stood back and looked down at the floor. Gavin was unable to tell whether she was shy, sad, disappointed, or perhaps all of the above. His father was practically smothering him with his hugs, and Gavin gently worked a hand between his body and his father’s, just to let him know he couldn’t breathe.

Harris Reed was a little taller than his son, with short grey hair, and a clean-shaven face. He was wearing a black spring jacket, and beneath that, he wore a bright blue dress shirt that went well with the grey dress pants he had on. Next to him was his wife of almost thirty-nine years, Stacey Louise Reed. She’d put her hair back in a loose ponytail, though some black strands hung about her neck and shoulders in little smooth tendrils. As Gavin stepped closer to her, he noticed that she had quite a lot of grey hairs among the rest of her black mass, and he felt his heart aching. His parents had been through a lot and aged significantly since they’d all last seen each other, and he was positive it was all due to stress.

The last family gathering had gone over horribly, and Gavin and his biological sister, Miranda Reed, had gotten into a huge fight because Gavin didn’t think her fiancé Brett O’Neil was a suitable partner for her. But Miranda was a headstrong as Gavin was, and she’d stated that although Gavin was her baby brother, she would never talk to him from that day forward. Of course, it’d naturally upset his parents, but tonight, they weren’t here to argue; they were here to find out just who their son was married to…altogether, it was going to be another stressful evening.

As Stacey shifted, she held onto her little brown purse at her side, and her purple blouse that barely provided her with enough warmth over her thin frame bunched up on her shoulders. She was wearing a black skirt that fell down a little past her kneecaps, and she had small black high heels on which she soon slipped out of once Gavin welcomed both his parents inside the hallway.

She started sniffing the air, and her nose wrinkled up. “Is that…” she pointed into the kitchen, “…is that lasagna, Gavin?”

Her son blushed and nodded, “Yeah…”

A look of temporary joy flooded his mother’s face, but then as she looked up past Gavin and at the grand staircase behind him, her eyes turned cold and dark. She crossed her arms over her chest as she stuck out her chin. “Ah, and this is your… _partner_?” she said the word with a little disgust and bite in her tone, and as Gavin turned around, he saw Nines standing on the last step of the stairs. He looked even taller than ever with the little height boost, but he got off the step and offered his hand to Gavin’s parents.

“Good evening Mrs. and Mr. Reed,” he said with a wide smile that was nothing but polite, “I’m so very glad you both could make it.”

Now that Nines was dry after his shower and had straightened out his clothing, he looked even better. His tie was perfectly placed on his neck, and his dress shirt almost glowed in the hallway lights. His dress pants were so freshly cleaned and ironed, that even the pockets were beyond flat and perfectly prim. He beamed at Gavin’s parents, and Harris Reed was the first to break out into a smile.

“Good evening, Mr…?” he looked at his wife for a second, as if she knew the answer, but then Nines stepped up a little as he answered.

“I’m Lieutenant Nines of the Detroit Police Department.”

Gavin’s mother scoffed as she studied Nines’ LED light, “An android? How marvelous, Gavin.” She shook her head, clearly disapproving, but her husband merely shrugged while still smiling at Nines.

“I don’t think it’s a bad thing you know…humans and androids marrying each other.”

She sneered at her husband, “We don’t need your opinion, Harris.”

He ignored her as he continued to stare at Nines while grinning. “Lieutenant, huh?”

While Harris seemed impressed by this, Stacey did not. She sneered at Nines, “Oh, so my son’s boss then supported your wedding? Hmm??” Her tone was already far too judgmental, and Gavin recognized it as the same tone she’d used on him and his sister when they were up to no good so many years, long ago.

Gavin and Nines stared at each other for a brief moment. They were both thinking the exact same thing. They knew for a fact they couldn’t reveal the truth about the marriage and the work they’d been doing, as it would land them both in a lot of trouble. The best they could do was smile and nod, and Nines stepped up to take that initiative as he took Harris’ spring jacket.

“You could say that,” Nines stated warmly, hanging the jacket in the huge closet neatly, “we have a very supportive workplace, which is great when you—”

“When you’re ‘gay’, right?” Stacey snapped the word out, and it hit the walls like someone throwing stones. The hall was dead silent for a while, and then as Harris blushed, he took an intake of air slowly, and smiled.

“Oooh,” he then hummed, clearly trying to cause a distraction, “is that lasagna, Gavin?? It sure smells good, son!”

Gavin smiled. He knew that his father was just using this as an excuse; he already knew the lasagna smelled good and was being prepared. Even when he was younger and had more energy and stamina, Harris had never been a confrontation, angry, or hot-tempered person. His wife on the other hand…she’d been more of an authoritative parent, and sometimes, her behavior resembled a dictatorship rather than a democracy. Still, Gavin found his parents balanced each other out well enough, and he tossed his father an appreciative look for causing the minor disruption.

Catching on to what Harris Reed was doing, Nines held out a hand, motioning over to the right, where the lovely dining room was. “Shall we?”

Gavin’s father was the first to follow him, and he smiled as he looked around the house and at the expensive decorations and paintings up on the walls. Even Gavin’s mother seemed a little impressed, though she still frowned as she walked beside Gavin slowly.

“At least he’s rich,” she whispered into her son’s ear, and Gavin rolled his eyes.

“Stop it, mom,” he whispered back as he gently held onto her elbow, “that’s _not_ what this is about at all!”

As Nines stopped before the entrance to the kitchen, Gavin’s parents turned and peeked inside the dining room, and they both gasped when they saw the cleanest and brightest plates and utensils evenly set out on the surface of the crystal-clear dining room table. Large candelabras held sets of three ruby red candlesticks together. Matching red napkins and placemats decorated the dark oak of the table, and Gavin noticed that Nines had recently changed the chairs as well to purple Carlyle Parson chairs that were soft and definitely very comfortable to sit in. Gavin’s parents appreciated the wall colors and the ceiling indentations and plaster décor, which consisted of spirals and swirl-shapes akin to waves of an ocean churning about.

Nines dimmed the lights a little, and then the lit candles shined even brightly as he carried in the freshly cooked lasagna. Gavin’s mother looked down at it, and her eyes glossed over with hunger and desire. She clasped her hands together as she took off her purse and draped it over the back of one of the chairs.

“This looks lovely, Gavin,” she commented as she pulled out her chair and gently pushed her husband to sit right beside her, “I’m so happy you thought to make my favorite meal!”

Gavin blushed and scratched the back of his neck. “Actually,” he snickered while tossing a glance over at Nines while he set the dish down in the center of the table carefully, “it was his idea…”

It was as if Gavin had told her unicorns were real. Gavin’s mother gasped as she stared at Nines with an open jaw. “You…you????”

He merely nodded while smiling widely, “Yes, I asked Gavin what your most prized dish happened to be, and he told me it was lasagna.”

The dish was perfectly arranged; the sauce lay nicely around the meal, not too thick and not too dry, and bits of freshly sliced basil, tomato, and shredded broccoli sat on the top. Thick mushrooms sat beneath the fine layer of white and yellow cheese.

Once they were all seated, Nines handed the knife to Gavin, “Would you like to cut it?”

He nodded, already getting to it, and Nines disappeared out of the dining room momentarily. When he returned, he brought out a large tray filled with drinks ranging from water to beer to fancier wine. Gavin’s father studied the drinks, and he smirked when Nines placed the tray on the end of the dining room table.

“Going all fancy there, eh Lieutenant?”

Nines smirked, “Please, call me Nines.”

Gavin’s mother hummed as she watched her son cut the lasagna evenly. Nines stood beside Gavin, already making a grab for Stacey’s plate. He chose to serve her first, and she let out a soft half-smile, her lips quivering as if she’d been fighting with herself and trying to hold back on completely smiling.

“Thank you…” there was a blush upon her face, “…though you don’t need to go out of your way to impress me like this, you know,” her words still were clipped and cold, but Nines didn’t mind. He served her first, and then Gavin’s father.

“I’m not, Mrs. Reed,” he said earnestly, “I’m merely trying to make you and your husband feel welcome in our home.”

Stacey huffed as Nines placed her plate of food down before her, and he was making his way back to the beverage tray.

“I’ll have water,” she snapped, and then frowned when her husband gently tapped her elbow in a small reminder, “please…”

“Certainly,” Nines poured her the water, and threw in one ice-cube. He then served Gavin’s father, and the older man stated he wanted diet soda, which Nines also gladly provided as Gavin sat and watched. When it was his turn, he went to help himself to the food, but Nines stopped him with a small smile and a hand pressed down over his own.

“I’ll get that,” Nines whispered gently, and Gavin beamed at him.

Harris Reed seemed very pleased, and he draped his wide napkin over his lap. “I’m very happy that Gavin’s found someone who takes care of him, Nines,” he inched his chair closer to the table, getting ready to eat as he picked up his utensils.

Stacey Reed held onto her glass of water, and she stared at her untouched food. “While I can agree,” she began softly, “as a mother, I have to worry for my son, and that’s going to be consistent throughout my life.”

Harris sighed, “Stacey…”

“No,” she boorishly interrupted, “have you even thought about the fact that Gavin may want kids in the future?!?” she threw a hand forward, “how’s he going to have them with Nines?!”

Gavin blushed and wished he could fall into the ground and disappear in a deep dark hole forever. Meanwhile, Nines didn’t appear to be too disturbed by what the older Reeds were saying, and he merely sat down and folded his hands in his lap while he waited patiently.

Harris groaned, “I don’t see the issue here, Stacey,” he shrugged, “they can adopt, just like any other same-sex couple.”

Stacey roughly snatched her utensils in her hand. “I think it is _you_ who’s missing the point, Harris,” she growled at her husband while using her butter knife to cut into her lasagna, “I know they can adopt, that’s not the point!”

Her husband looked dumbfounded. “Then what _is_ the point?”

Stacey looked genuinely unhappy as she pushed her lasagna bits around her plate. “Don’t you think Gavin deserves to have a _real_ family with children that are biologically his own?! That’s the major joy in life, Harris, and he’s being denied this!!”

Harris Reed looked quickly between Nines and Gavin, and then shrugged. “I don’t see the big issue here, Stacey!!”

His wife rolled her eyes and pressed a hand against her forehead in desolation, “Oh, you are lost, Harris!”

Once again, Gavin really wished the floor could open and swallow him up whole. He didn’t need Nines to hear this as well, and he tossed his husband a sorrowful look as he mouthed silently at him, “I’m sorry.”

Nines didn’t mind, and he merely stretched a hand out beneath the table, and when Gavin draped his own hand down as well, his fingers were met with his husband’s. Their fingers stroked each other, and Gavin nearly sighed out loud in happiness. Nines’ fingers and hand felt so comforting in his own, and he never wanted to break away from his hold. It held compassion, warmth, care, and support. He truly felt he had everything he needed…

“Don’t you think we deserve to be grandparents, Harris?!” Stacey screamed, her mouth partly full of lasagna, and her husband tapped a fingernail against his glass. It made a strange sound amidst the screaming, as though a bomb was ticking down the last seconds slowly before it went off.

“I do agree, Stacey,” he finally uttered when he stopped tapping and appeared calmer, “but for now, I think it’s a lot better for us to be open-minded, accepting, and to be proud of both Gavin _and_ Nines for sticking together with plans of having a future life.” He paused, offering the sincerest of smiles at Nines especially, “I see nothing wrong with this picture, and I think you should start seeing it that way as well.”

Stacey set down her fork for a moment as she glared at her husband. “Oh for goodness sake, Harris!” she picked it up again, collecting some mushrooms onto it, “why can’t you—”

Beeeeeeeep!!!!!! Beeeeeeeeep!!!!!!!

Stacey screamed a mighty scream, throwing her utensils down into her plate with a violent clatter that was hard on everyone’s ears. She pushed her chair out a little, staring around down at the floor. When she saw Shelley’s round head by her lap, she screamed even louder while pointing at the little Nano-Bot.

“WHAT’RE YOU?!?! WHAT’S THIS?!?!?”

Beeeeeep! “Howdy. Missy. I’m. Shelley!”

The answer had been cheerful, and Gavin’s father broke out into a hearty laugh when he heard Shelley’s excited voice ring out. Even Nines and Gavin tried containing their smiles, but it grew difficult as Shelley floated around Stacey’s legs.

“Pretty. Rad. Outfit. Missy. But. It’d. Totes. Look. Better. In. Red.”

Stacey fumed, “Ahh!! You little—Gavin!” Her hands trembled, but she pointed a finger directly at Shelley. “What’s this thing??!?”

Gavin merely shrugged, “That’s Shelley, as she herself said, and she’s my daughter.” He couldn’t help but keep the proud, boastful tone in his voice.

“Your _daughter?!?!_ ” Stacey shrieked, and then she collapsed back into her chair. “Dear God, why me?! Why me?!?!” she cried out in sorrow, shaking as she held her head in her hands. “I can get over you preferring men, Gavin,” she pushed out painfully, “but…not _this_!!!!” she shook her head as she stared at Shelley for a split second, “other mothers have grandkids that are real and in the flesh, and here I get a _robot_ for a grandchild?!?!?”

Gavin snickered, “Technically, she’s a ‘Nano-Bot,’ ma…just sayin’!”

Before Harris could interrupt to calm his hysterical wife down, Shelley moved upwards, and she placed her head on Stacey’s lap boldly. Her light turned soft blue as she purred out, “Bitch. I’m. The. Best. Granddaughter. You’ll. Ever. Have. So. Welcome. To. Our. Family.”

That had been too much for Harris to take. He practically rolled into the table as rounds of laughter flew from his mouth, and he had to hold up his napkin against his lips to contain his boisterous laughs. Nines and Gavin exchanged looks, and then they themselves were lost to laughter that was as pleasant-sounding as Harris’. It must’ve been so contagious, for after a few seconds, a smile played at Stacey’s lips.

Before she knew it, even she was giggling and laughing along with them, and she threw her head back as tears of joy escaped from the corners of her eyes. This had been the longest and loudest she’d laughed in months, and she was unable to stop as she leaned down and gently rubbed her hand on Shelley’s back.

It’d taken nearly five minutes before they all calmed down enough to make a happy toast, a symbol that they were starting over, and then they finally dug into the wonderful meal.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Shelley had been the one to break the spell. In less than a few minutes after she’d shown up during dinner, Stacey Reed significantly warmed up to Nines. She started acting more like her motherly, kind self as Gavin had remembered when he was younger. Her cheeks flushed rosy pink, her hair had been let loose around her face, and her body posture and language even displayed that she felt a lot more comfortable now. She’d finished her meal the fastest, as well, and had even gone so far as to feel that their house was her own so that she’d pushed Nines and Gavin out of the kitchen and cleaned up after everyone while humming and singing to a tune Shelley had put on.

It was such a lovely sight to see Stacey completely relaxed and open as she playfully giggled while Shelley toyed with and chased the dish soap bubbles while the hip-hop music blasted throughout the kitchen.

Afterwards, the family had sat in the den for ice cream, cookies, cake, and tea, which Harris Reed had gobbled up in less than a few minutes, and then received quite the lecture from his wife about his cholesterol and diabetes skyrocketing if he didn’t stop.

Truly, it’d been a wonderful evening, and Gavin and Nines shared and basked in the warmth of closeness, kindness, empathy, and love they’d received from both Harris and Stacey Reed. Time soon flew by, and outside, the sun had finally set by the time all the cake and cookies had been gone. Gavin’s parents began winding down for the late evening, and Nines had helped them bring in their luggage and toiletries so they could stay the night as planned.

It’d pleasantly been decided upon that Gavin was going to let his mother sleep in his bedroom, while Nines and Harris Reed hung out on the balcony by Nines’ guest bedroom. After dessert, Stacey had insisted that she wanted to spend time with her son alone, and Nines respected it as he offered Harris champagne, put on classical music, and sat with the older Reed on the balcony at a medium-sized round, glass table.

Harris sat staring at the night sky littered with plenty of tantalizing stars and sighed. Nines soon pushed over towards the center of the table a box of Cuban cigars. “Would you like one?”

Harris nodded happily, “Thanks Nines, I’ll have one.” Taking one out of the box, he sat back as Nines lit a match, and held it before the end of the cigar dangling from Harris’ mouth. The thick, heavy smoke blew up into the air, and the orange flames of the cigar lit up the night sky even lovelier than the street lights did. Harris leaned back in his chair comfortably as Nines turned to look out into the night as well. For a while, they sat together in silence, and then Harris chuckled.

“You know what, Nines?” he began softly, “I like you. I like you a lot, in fact…” he scratched at his forearm and pulled the dress shirt sleeve up, “I’ll admit, when I first found out Gavin had gotten married to a man, I wasn’t too excited, but for the sake of my son, I remained calm.”

Nines merely looked down at his feet. “I can understand where you’re coming from,” he started gently, “and I can only do my best to assure you that I’m doing whatever is in my power to keep your son happy and safe.”

Harris took a drag from the cigar and exhaled slowly, the smoke winding up to the sky as he leaned forward a little. “Gavin likes to act tough, but he’s more fragile than he seems, Nines,” he said as he flicked the ashes of the cigar into the little serpent-shaped ashtray. “He needs someone who can be his ‘safety net’, but beyond that, I think he needs someone who can be comfortable with telling him that it’s okay to admit that he needs help and guidance.”

Nines was silent as he held a hand beneath his chin and stared seriously at Harris.

“Obviously my wife and I won’t be around forever,” the older man sighed out, “and what my biggest fear and worry always had been was that Gavin was going to grow older without having someone to guide him and take care of him…and it had nothing to do with him being gay.”

Nines tilted his head at Harris, “You’re more accepting, but it still bothers you that he didn’t tell you.” It was an obvious fact that rested firmly between them, much like the concrete of the balcony.

Harris nodded as he sadly looked up. “Yeah, trust me, that’s one of the worst things you can feel and experience as a parent,” he studied the brown cigar for a moment, turning it in his fingers as he sighed again. “I feel like I failed Gavin somehow…like…if he was unable to tell me, does that mean I messed up somewhere in how I raised him??” he then shrugged, as if trying to suppress the answer to his own question. “I never wanted my children to fear me, Nines, but when Gavin hid it from me all the years…” he shivered and wiped his eyes, though tears had just started forming in them.

Remaining empathetic, Nines only offered the older man a smile that he hoped was warm, supportive, and told Harris he was indeed listening to him.

Harris smiled back, though it was weak, and a few more tears fell from his round eyes. He sniffled and cleared his throat as he stared at his feet. “Gavin’s a good kid,” he announced, and Nines nodded slowly. “He never gave us any trouble while growing up, and while I appreciated that as a father, I often felt that he was hiding a lot just so we wouldn’t feel disappointed or ashamed of him…” Harris winced, wiped his eyes, and then gripped his right knee tightly, his knuckles turning white slowly.

“He was never a disappointment; he was and _always_ will be my baby boy…”

The sounds of the night and traffic in the distance responded back as they echoed in the darkness, and Harris glanced up, taking the lovely view in while his tears dried off. Smoke emanating from his cigar danced about like a charmed cobra in the wind, and he leaned back as he swallowed gently.

Taking a small peek over at Nines, Harris chuckled, “I’m sorry Nines, I didn’t mean to get all emotional here with you seeing as I’ve only just met you, but I wanted to say that I am more than confident you’ll stand by Gavin’s side no matter what, and that will help me sleep well tonight.”

Smiling warmly, Nines nodded as his LED light flashed blue a few times. “I appreciate hearing you say that, Harris, but if I can say something for a moment…” he waited until he had the older man’s eyes on his own, “…I think Gavin only kept his sexuality from you and your wife because he wanted to make you both proud, but also, he didn’t want you two to feel like you had failed him.”

Nodding slowly, Harris took another drag from his cigar before grabbing the ashtray. “I know, Nines,” he gently pushed out, “but we love our son, and that won’t ever change.”

“He’s lucky to have you two as parents,” Nines commented with honesty, and it made Harris chuckle as he pet Nines on the back a few times.

“And you know what, Nines?” he put the cigar out gently, “I’m lucky to have an understanding son-in-law, I’d say.”

Nines chuckled then, “And it doesn’t hurt that I compliment your ego, correct?”

Harris let out a bark of a laugh as he held the cigar in his lap. “You cheeky android,” he stood up, placing the cigar in his dress shirt pocket. “I’m getting tired, Nines,” he yawned, “Stacey and I have a long drive ahead of us in the morning, so if it’s okay with you, I’d like to say goodnight for now.”

Nines held up a hand, “I understand,” he got up as well, tucking the chairs into the table as he led the way back into the guest bedroom. “If you’ll allow me, I can provide you with nothing but the best, and most comfortable of pillows that are filled to the brim with goose feathers that will help you sleep better than you ever have in your life…”

Harris laughed as he draped an arm around his son-in-law’s shoulders, “Lead the way, Nines, lead the way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my god!! SHELLEY ! YOU CUTE SHIT! YOU MADE GAVIN'S MOM LOVE YOU LIKE A GRANDMOTHER!!!!!!!😭😭😥😥😰😰 Legit, she even brought this family together MORE, plus her lines were hilarious! 
> 
> Gavin's dad had a good heart-to-heart with his son-in-law, and I'm just  
> ksdjreoipo340kfsalarijqo908421kjlkjsdqrp3131221!!!!!!900809jkjksdjdsiiweqnmkcx,mczxml!!!!!!!!!!!
> 
> Done.


	35. Serendipity

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Got my anxiety back with a vengeance. Shit. No one cares, Avixi.  
> Well, prepare yourselves for more teasing from the husbands, and a surprise visitor!

 

After exchanging loving and gentle hugs, handshakes, and kisses, Stacey Louise and Harris Reed bid Gavin and Nines farewell, and even Stacey seemed to be in a better mood the follow morning as she took a few selfies with Nines and Shelley.

“We’ll come back to visit you again sometime in the autumn, son,” Harris had said to Gavin as he hugged him and pet him on the cheek. “Take care of each other and try to call us at least once a week.”

“I promise, dad.”

His mother hugged him the tightest and longest, whispering to him, “Take care of each other, and try to be happy each day!”

Again, Gavin found himself promising his parents he would do just that, and he held onto his mother’s hands almost tearfully while Nines and Harris loaded up the car for the journey back home.

Stacey and Harris Reed eventually drove away with smiles and hand waves, and by the time Nines and Gavin got back inside their home, the phone rang loudly. Nines answered it quickly while Gavin cleaned up the breakfast table. Truth be told, he was trying to distract himself from the fact that he missed his parents already. His mother had been extra sweet and gentle this morning, and after chatting with her late until almost four in the morning, he’d got her caught up on the wedding and everything else involving Nines. Of course, he’d left the case out of it, and his mother had told him she’d completely misjudged Nines.

The Reed matriarch stated that she was starting to trust Nines deeply, and so long as Gavin was happy, she would be as well. It was the ultimate sacrifice a parent could’ve done for their child. Before she’d fallen asleep, Stacey made sure that Gavin promised her that he would never hide anything from her ever again. She told him that no matter what, she would try to come around and understand him through it all. Gavin had her love, and that was enough to send him to sleep with a large smile on his face.

The smile persisted through the morning, but it turned sad while Nines’ deep, soothing voice droned on in the other room as Gavin continued cleaning the kitchen. Every once in a while, he would sigh out in sadness, longing for his parents to return again, and Shelley would nuzzle him every once in a while, in a move of compassion and empathy.

After a few minutes of chatting, his husband had ended the phone call, and he soon joined Gavin in the kitchen. With a bright smile on his handsome face, Nines announced that Elijah Kamski wished to drop by for brunch and tea.

This surprised Gavin, and he lightly frowned as he stood beside Nines in the kitchen, while Shelley hovered by their knees. “What’re we gonna make, Nines?” he asked as he tapped a finger on his chin in thought.

Nines tossed him a grin, “We need to go on an excursion—shall we say, a shopping trip first, Gavin,” he said warmly, “Elijah Kamski deserves some ice-cream and a lovely Sanguinaccio Dolce!”

Upon hearing the Italian, Gavin frowned, “What’s that?”

Nines didn’t answer him until he’d gently pushed Gavin out of the kitchen and out of the front door of the mansion. Shelley hovered behind the glass insert, shining soft blue lights at them, as if trying to still hear what they were saying.

As they sat down in the car, Nines turned and tossed him a playful grin, “It’s an Italian pudding made from pig’s blood which is made creamy and sweetened with ingredients such as chocolate, milk, pine nuts, raisins and sugar.”

Gavin paled immediately, “Umm…if it’s okay with you, Nines, can we leave the pig’s blood out of it??”

Nines chuckled as he drove them to a small shop on the other side of town. “We can make do with a Sanguinaccio Dolce Senza Sangue, Gavin…” he leaned over and whispered seductively into his husband’s ear as he pulled into the small parking lot of a small-but well-known expensive store that sold and provided European foods, “…that is without the pig’s blood, mind you…”

Gavin pressed a hand on his ear as he shivered in mild delight, “Yeah…let’s just do that without the blood, okay? Thanks…”

Nines was unable to keep the smile off his face as they entered the store. He instructed Gavin on what they needed to purchase as they walked side-by-side, shopping together for the first time ever as a couple. Internally, Gavin was in heaven. He couldn’t believe that the day had come where he was shopping and out in public proudly with his partner, his husband, his other half.

Peeking over at the tall android standing closely next to him, Gavin’s heart leapt in his chest.

 _“He’s not ashamed to be next to me, he’s not embarrassed and scared…so this is how it feels to have someone by your side…”_ Gavin was all smiles as he thought about how lovely and free he felt to finally shop with someone else. It’d been years-if not, decades-since he’d done this so freely and enjoyed it.

No one else in the store even really paid them any mind, and Gavin felt even more relaxed, free, and natural as he took steps evenly with Nines by his side. They moved together as one unit, and Gavin had never felt so complete with another person than he had felt in that moment with Nines. He just still couldn’t believe how they’d gone from angry co-workers to more than friends in such a short amount of time. They were so close-not just physically-and Gavin’s heart soared like a bird high in the sky.

“We won’t need anything fancy for this, Gavin,” Nines stated as he walked over with Gavin towards the fruits and berries isle. He grabbed a small bag and pointed out specifically what they needed.

“What this little treat entails is just some milk, flour, sugar, cocoa powder, and good-quality chocolate!”

“Chocolate pudding?” Gavin asked with a mixture of mild curiosity and mild caution rising in his voice, “we’re making chocolate pudding?”

Nines winked, “You can think of it that way, but try not saying that out loud in front of Elijah; he hates whenever his sensibilities and fanciful ideas are put down so brashly.”

Gavin couldn’t stop himself from rolling his eyes as he grabbed the plastic bag out of Nines’ hands gently. “Yeah, yeah,” he snickered, “so tell me what kinds of berries we need.”

Moving closer towards him, Nines pointed at the fresh berries laid out before them. “Elijah prefers raspberries as well as blueberries-preferably the freshest ones, Gavin.”

“Mhm, mhm,” Gavin hummed, picking the best berries from the offered bunch that he could, and he placed the baskets inside the bags and tied them off gently while Nines grabbed a little shopping basket and held it over his shoulder.

He didn’t go anywhere else in the fancy store without Gavin by his side, and they purchased freshly squeezed cow milk, a few oranges to contain the chocolate pudding and serve it in, the coco powder, and some vanilla extract. Gavin was hungry before they even left the store and paid for their items, but his happiness and excitement over the fact that he was now closer to Nines outweighed anything else. He could’ve won the lottery over a hundred times, and he wouldn’t care much about that in comparison to how he felt for Nines.

“This is real progress you know,” he said to Nines as he helped him place the purchased goods in the backseat of the Cadillac. Nines opened the passenger door for him, and Gavin felt his cheeks flaming up as he sat down in the car gently.

Nines didn’t step away from the passenger’s side of the car as soon as Gavin had gotten in; the men merely exchanged warm, empathetic glances until Gavin had to shyly break away from the intensity of the gaze his husband was offering him. Only then did Nines gently close the passenger door and make his way towards the driver’s side.

When Nines got in as well, Gavin snickered, “I guess chivalry isn’t dead after all, huh?”

His husband grinned all the way until they reached home.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

“Gavin, do try and get that little monster of yours under control, or so help me, I’ll kick her out into the yard.”

Nines glared down at Shelley as she spun around playfully in circles, crashing into the kitchen chairs and stools loudly while Gavin and Nines were trying to prepare the Sanguinaccio Dolce Senza Sangue. Nines held a blue ceramic bowl in his hands and washed the berries carefully before placing them onto the counter, but he would scowl over at the impish Nano-Bot whenever he got a chance.

Shaking his head at her in disappointment when she nearly knocked down a stool, he sighed out, “When did Shelley become so disruptive?!?”

Gavin only offered his husband a shrug, “Perhaps she takes on after her dad,” he winked at Nines, and then playfully elbowed him in the side.

“Hmmf!” Nines snorted his way, “I left her in _your_ care, darling husband,” he then chuckled, but it was cut short when Shelley’s tail flicked out, and she hooked it onto the side of the kitchen island, as if holding for dear life while she spun faster and faster out of control.

Nines tossed her a glare that she ignored before directing his heated glare at Gavin, “Quite honestly, she doesn’t even listen to me anymore…” he pointed out accurately, and again, Gavin snickered while offering a half-shrug.

“Maybe think about that next time you bond her to me, maybe?” he threw his head back and laughed when Shelley whispered out something like: “Aww. Hell. Naw. Bruh.”

Nines had to have heard it as well, and his LED light turned yellow while he snapped his fingers at Shelley, clearly trying to desperately shoo and usher her out of the kitchen. It clearly didn’t work, as she merely hid beneath chairs and tables, remaining silent for a few seconds until Nines turned back to his meal preparation.

Evidently amused by all the playfulness, Gavin grinned as he reached to pluck a raspberry off the top of the pile, but then Nines’ hand slapped the back of his own gently away.

“What the?!”

Nines leaned into him and smirked coyly at him, “I never said you couldn’t have one, Gavin…” as his husband gave a frown of sheer disappointment, Nines grabbed a single raspberry off the top of the pile and studied it for a moment.

“So _you_ get to have one?” Gavin hissed, watching in disappointment as Nines placed the raspberry up to his lips, but he didn’t bite it or put it in his mouth.

“You didn’t allow me to finish my statement, Gavin…” he opened his mouth and placed the raspberry gently and carefully between his teeth, not even crushing it as he leaned down with his face inches away from Gavin’s. The raspberry was so close, and Gavin could smell it as Nines kept leaning and inching closer and closer to him. His heart began racing uncontrollably, and he whispered, “Nines…”

His husband’s eyes were upon his lips, and there was something playful and seductive in the center of Nines’ eyes. He raised both eyebrows slowly, still leaning in closer towards Gavin. Now, they were so close that the raspberry poked Gavin’s lips, and as his tongue darted out to wet his dry lips, he felt the water still upon the little berry dripping over his lips. It fell down to the center, and Gavin’s tongue accidentally caught it. He lapped it up, tasting both the essence of the berry and the fresh water while Nines’ eyes fixated on his pink tongue. He leaned even closer, and his hands were placed on the counter behind Gavin, palms resting downwards as his long arms were draped on either side of Gavin’s body, trapping him between his own body and the counter.

Gavin’s eyes widened, but he found himself leaning closer, eager to meet Nines’ lips and mouth. His jaw fell open slightly, and he took in a sharp breath, feeling so warm and aroused just by the way Nines was studying his lips. He looked like he wanted to eat them whole, and as Gavin sealed the remainder of the tiny gap between their bodies, Nines pressed down, and the raspberry gently rubbed against the top of Gavin’s lower teeth. The berry exploded between them, and Nines used his tongue to push majority of it forward and into his husband’s mouth.

Before Gavin could press their lips together, Nines backed away, chewing down on his small portion of the berry while grinning mischievously at Gavin. His lips were stained red from the berry juice, and Gavin gasped. He nearly coughed, but managed to swallow down his bite of the berry while wiping his lips with the back of a hand angrily.

“Nines! You tease!!” the berry felt lovely in his mouth, but the feeling in his pants between his legs didn’t; not when he couldn’t do anything to seek satisfaction or relief.

Nines grinned playfully as he winked at Gavin. “You shouldn’t be angry with me, Gavin,” he snickered, “after all, I refuse to do anything raunchy in front of the child…” he threw a little scowl at Shelley, and as Gavin turned over to stare at her, he felt a little embarrassed given the display of their playful flirting. Shelley was tilting her head at them both, and then her light switched to bright pink as she spun around and swished her tail about.

“The hell do _you_ find so funny about it?!” Gavin couldn’t keep the giggle out of his voice for too long.

Boooooop! “Honey. You. Have. To. Control. Your. Hankering. For. That. Sweet. Body!!”

Gavin gasped, and in a pathetic last-minute effort to save his dignity and pride, he grabbed a dish cloth off the counter, and he flung it as hard as he could at Shelley. She flew out of the kitchen quickly, gliding through the air until she was safely in the hall and presumably upstairs.

Gavin was furious. “That little—ohhh! I’m going to seriously set her straight after this!!”

Nines merely scoffed, though he followed it up with a playful laugh, “It’s _your_ fault that she’s like this,” he pointed out, “after all, _you_ were her role model, Gavin.”

“I know, but—”

“Hush,” Nines whispered, moving back into place beside his husband as he began washing and cutting the oranges up. He perfectly sliced the interior bits up, storing them away in a container whilst keeping the skin untouched to place the chocolate pudding inside. Gavin began to add the milk and sugar into a bowl, mixing them gently while Nines set out cinnamon sticks.

He waved one in the air, holding it right beneath Gavin’s nose. The shorter man huffed and gently shoved the cinnamon stick away, “Stop teasing me!!”

“I wasn’t,” Nines purred, grabbing fresh chocolate bars out of the fridge that were still cold. He rubbed one of them on the back of Gavin’s neck, and Gavin yelped as he spun around and gave Nines a hard shove.

“You ass!” they both ended up giggling throughout it all, and to save up on time, Nines grabbed a pot and combined the milk and cinnamon stick. He allowed the mixture to heat over for roughly 3 to 5 minutes, the dessert just barely simmering. He then removed it from the source of heat and discarded the cinnamon stick. Next, he used a medium bowl to sift together the cocoa powder, sugar, and flour.

Gavin watched him carefully the entire time, and he hummed as Nines’ hands and fingers wove around almost artistically as his LED light turned yellow. He was focused and trying to make sheer perfection as he added in one teaspoon of vanilla extract. Nines handled the food delicately, letting it go back into the pot on the stove as he smiled at Gavin.

“Time this for a few more minutes, and you’ll know when it is finished.”

As he began walking away, Gavin gaped at him, “H-hey! Where’re you goin’?”

Nines threw him a mischievous grin over his shoulder. “I need to get ready, but I trust you won’t burn the house down, right Gavin?” he winked, and had disappeared a second later.

Gavin looked back and forth between the stove and the hallway, and after a few minutes, he turned the element off and let the mixture cool down. It smelled so wonderful, and as he mixed it gently, the doorbell rang.

“I got it!!!!” he raced towards the door, still wearing the bright orange cooking apron. He didn’t realize he had it on, and as he opened the front door, Elijah Kamski’s bright smile was the first thing he saw. The man’s blue eyes then fell down to Gavin’s cooking apron, and he snickered, though not in an offensive manner.

“I hope I’m not interrupting something, Gavin?”

Staring down at his apron, Gavin felt mortified. “Oh!” he yanked it off quickly, trying to push down the embarrassing feelings coursing through him. “It’s fine! You’re right on time, come in!” he stepped to the side and allowed Kamski to walk in. The man was wearing black skinny jeans, black sneakers, and a black and white t-shirt. He looked comfortable and neat, but before Gavin could comment on his style of dress, Kamski’s nose wrinkled as he sniffed the air.

“Is something burning?”

Gavin’s eyes widened. “OH SHIT!!!!!!!! THE PUDDING!!!!!!”

Racing back to the kitchen, he leapt towards the stove, dumping out the sanguinaccio dolce into the orange peel bowls hurriedly. Elijah Kamski walked up behind him, and he stepped forward as he gently took the mixture into his own hands.

“You have to pour that in slowly,” he explained as he carefully pushed the mixture down with a wooden cooking spoon, “not a drop of this must be wasted, after all!”

Gavin sighed, “We have vanilla, too…”

Kamski smirked, “Just the very thing I love…” he helped himself to the freezer and fridge, bringing out ice cream and setting it into a serving bowl while Gavin found sugar in the cupboards and sprinkled them into the sanguinaccio dolce.

Kamski grabbed the bowl of berries next, “Aaaand a dash of this!” he littered the top of his sanguinaccio dolce with a combination of raspberries and blueberries, setting it aside to simmer down and cool off while he beamed at Gavin proudly.

“So,” he said when everything had calmed down, “how’re things?”

“They’re fine, Elijah,” a deep voice answered calmly.

They both turned and faced Nines as he walked in, wearing all black clothes as he strode up towards the stove. He’d just recently changed, but he looked delectable in Gavin’s eyes. The shorter man was barely able to keep his eyes off his husband as Nines hurriedly put away the ice-cream and cleaned up the kitchen while Elijah Kamski helped himself to some vanilla and chocolate mix to go along with the sanguinaccio dolce.

He dipped his cinnamon stick into it first, mixing it about before he tested it by letting a finger dive into it. “Hmm,” he closed his eyes in happiness as he sampled it, “perfect, Nines,” he sighed proudly, grabbing a large spoon as he ate it up while occasionally taking a bit of ice-cream as well. Now, Elijah Kamski was truly comfortable and content with his meal, and he moved it as well as himself over to sit upon a dark stool at the center of a large kitchen island.

Sitting down beside him, Nines snorted while pointing at the ice-cream, “As if there isn’t enough chocolate to go around; you have to have more, Elijah?”

The man merely snickered while Gavin seated himself comfortably right beside Nines on the stool next to his.

“Well,” Elijah Kamski began in a playful tone, “you know me, Nines! Gotta satisfy that sweet tooth.”

“Indeed,” Nines pressed out, looking around the kitchen suddenly. “Alone again, Elijah? I hope you won’t make this into a habit…”

Kamski merely laughed as he tapped his spoon to the side while licking the rim of the orange-peel-bowl. “Chloe’s on a girl’s day out, Nines,” he joked while elbowing the android, “I make one sentient being, and suddenly, they want to rule the world.”

The RK900 teasingly scoffed at Elijah. “It’s far too late for an onslaught of guilt, Elijah,” Nines grinned at Gavin next, gently leaning over and peeking at his sanguinaccio dolce. “Is it to your liking?”

Gavin nearly missed his question the first time. “Huh?”

“Is it to your liking, my darling?” Nines couldn’t keep the purr out of his voice, and Kamski blushed as he stared at them both.

“Umm,” he awkwardly blurted out, “I can leave early, if you guys want some ‘alone time’….”

Both Gavin and Nines scowled at him, and he looked away as he hurriedly ate his desserts. The ice-cream had practically melted as he took his time with it, but after a few minutes of eating in silence, he stared over at Gavin and Nines again, though this time surreptitiously. Elijah Kamski definitely noticed how fondly they were staring at each other while Nines pushed around more of the berries for Gavin to take. Gavin blushed as he began eating them while he coated them in more chocolate.

“You two seem a lot closer in comparison to the last time I saw you,” Kamski pointed out accurately with a smug expression painted onto his face.

Nines and Gavin froze for a moment, but then cleared their throats.

“You see too much, Elijah,” Nines hissed gently, though his accusatory tone soon wavered when he felt Gavin’s eyes on him. Turning to the shorter male, he then smiled at Gavin again.

Kamski rolled his eyes, “Face it! Something changed between you two, and whatever it is, I’m happy for you both.”

BOOOOP!!! BEEEEEEEP!! “Yello. Kamski! What’s. Good. Man?”

Everyone peered down to see Shelley excitedly hovering around Kamski’s legs. Her tail had darted out of her body, almost swishing and wagging from side-to-side as a dog’s would when greeting someone familiar.

Kamski raised a thin eyebrow as he laughed while bending down and petting Shelley on the head. “Holy cow,” he exclaimed as his eyes widened the longer he studied Shelley, “even my Nano-Bot’s different!!” he turned his head to the side and gazed at Nines, “did you do something to her?”

Nines merely grinned at Gavin, as though proud of something the detective had done. “You’d have to ask Gavin about that, Elijah,” Nines stated while gently poking Gavin in the arm, and then Gavin took his own turn by teasingly poking Nines in the side of the neck. Nines merely smiled at him while Kamski eyed them for a while, only to peer back down at Shelley when she demanded attention from him.

That went on for some time; Shelley purring and rubbing against Kamski, while Gavin and Nines were busy playing a little game of ‘footsie’ down below the kitchen island in their own secretive way. Nines was taking the ‘win’ by wrapping a long leg around Gavin’s ankle and calf, and the other male was mesmerized and baffled by how strong his husband happened to be while they wrestled for dominance using only their legs. They were both quiet about it as they gently pushed and shoved at each other, but then it was all ruined when Gavin poked Nines on the tip of his nose with the back of his spoon lightly. Some of Gavin’s sanguinaccio dolce had gotten smeared onto Nines’ skin as a result, and Gavin felt himself about to explode in laughter once he saw how goofy Nines looked with dessert hanging on the tip of his nose. Nines stared at him blankly, and then Gavin finally burst out in a fit of giggles he tried suppressing when Kamski smirked over at them.

After that awkwardness and playful display passed by, Nines grabbed a spoon and dipped it into Gavin’s sanguinaccio dolce, sharing the meal with him while Gavin looked fondly at him. This went on for a while before Kamski sighed out, “Last week, a member from Ouroboros tried to break into my home…”

Gavin and Nines snapped up, staring angrily at Kamski.

“You didn’t report it to the authorities?!” Gavin hissed, his patience already gone, while Nines sighed and shook his head at Kamski.

The man played with the little bun at the back of his head. “I was kinda embarrassed!!” he admitted as he wiped his lips with a napkin, “and besides, I didn’t want the world knowing that Mr. Elijah Kamski has piss-poor security systems!!”

“What do you think they wanted from your home, Elijah?” Nines asked seriously.

The man looked down at the counter. “I have no idea,” he finally admitted softly after some time, “but I don’t feel so safe anymore…not when they’re all over the place…”

“You have to leave your residence,” Nines offered in a warning and suggestion, and Kamski emitted a small sigh as if he was considering it already.

“Hmm,” he hummed as he shifted about, “Chloe’s frightened, so that may not be entirely a bad option, now that I think about it, Nines…”

Growling softly, Nines seemed angry, though it wasn’t with Elijah. “Those demonic creatures are nothing but a menace,” he jeered as if a member of the gang was right in front of him so he could direct and channel his rage at them instead. “If they want to run everyone out of Detroit in fear for their lives, they have another thing coming to them entirely.”

Gavin suddenly lost his appetite. He stood from the counter, already trying to excuse himself so he could get back to work on figuring out how Ouroboros even made Slo-Freeze, and possibly what else they wanted to do with the deadly drug.

“If you’ll excuse me,” he bowed his head respectfully, “I’ll have to get working on something, Elijah, I’m very sorry.”

The man merely waved and shrugged, “It’s okay, I have to get going anyway,” he looked at his phone and pocketed it once he saw the time, “got an important meeting with the new CEO of CyberLife.”

Nines helped him to the door while Gavin hurriedly cleaned up. He tried not listening in on their conversation, but he heard Elijah whispering to Nines that he should protect Gavin and watch over him, especially considering how he’d heard of news articles leaking information that Gavin’s life was in danger. It didn’t take much of a genius to determine that, but when Elijah Kamski had told Nines to be extra careful, Gavin felt the weight of the situation hitting him like a truck. Just how were the gang members threatening someone with the greatest and highest social standing such as Elijah Kamski? Had they even gone after Kamski to get to Nines or Gavin?

All these thoughts worried him, and it appeared that Nines had ask the same thing of Kamski as they lowered their voices to hushed whispers. However, Kamski assured Nines that if the moment came to it, he would abandon everything and flee to a safe location he had in another country.

As Nines tried calming his friend down, Gavin went to open the large freezer compartment below the fridge. The moment he did, his anger and rage fueled and spiked up even higher.

He still had the strawberry-vanilla cake that Raoul helped him get from beneath the freezer of the grocery store all those weeks ago. It’d been untouched as it sat beneath frozen turkey drumsticks, the corn, snow peas, beans, and the rest of the ice-cream.

Gavin resisted the urge to slam the freezer door shut as he tried pushing the image and memories of the cake and Raoul from his mind.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> God damn it Nines, can you stop, STAHP torturing Gavin and just bang him deliciously and ravage his a--


	36. Prelude to Divinity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Posting this early because a friend of mine is coming by to keep me company through my rough moments.  
> Hurry up, Queen Royala. I've had enough already. Figured I'd reward my kind readers while I wait for that moron to turn up (no hate on Queen Royala, love you)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More food, romance, and oh my suck, we're halfway through this fic already! 
> 
> As always, music credit goes to the following two artists, and I shall post/link the music if you wish to enjoy it for yourself.
> 
> The first piece Nines played in the kitchen: Camille Saint-Saëns - The Swan  
> Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXAlznKcJvA
> 
> The second piece is Debussy - Arabesque No.1  
> Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Fle2CP8gR0

 

Gavin felt his phone vibrating as he tried re-reading his notes for the millionth time that late afternoon. Peering down at the screen, he saw that he had four unread messages from Raoul Spencer.

Groaning, Gavin grabbed the phone, and he’d been about to open the messages, when Nines’ footsteps padded towards the room. Gavin had left his bedroom door wide open now that he considered himself a lot closer and more open with Nines, and the android merely walked in, but paused briefly while knocking on the door once.

“May I come in?” his head was slightly bowed, a gesture of deep and sincere obeisance, no doubt.

Gavin smiled as he shoved his phone beneath a pillow. “Umm, yeah, sure,” he smiled as he closed his notebook, “you can come in.”

Nines walked around the room, simply pacing and thinking until his eyes landed on Gavin’s notebook. “Still working?” he asked softly.

Gavin shook his head, “Well, I was, but—” his stomach rumbling interrupted and simultaneously answered everything. He glared down at it while Nines smiled. He walked up to the bed and held out his hand for Gavin to take.

“Come,” he pleaded and urged gently, “I would like to prepare a traditional Greek salad for you.”

Unable to believe it, Gavin blushed. “You want to make me something to eat, Nines?”

His husband stared down at his own feet, and if Gavin didn’t know any better, he would’ve naturally assumed that this was Nines showing and displaying that he was shy…

“Well,” Nines began, and then pressed a clenched hand at the side of his right thigh, though his body posture was relaxed and non-confrontational, “I recall you once asking me whether I knew of any ‘low-calorie’ diets and meal plans, Gavin,” Nines reminded him, “and as I pondered about it, I found I am well versed in many interesting recipes I think you’d enjoy…” as he stared up at Gavin, his eyes widened a little, “…I mean, that isn’t to suggest or imply that you require to go on a diet, as your physique and body shape is quite outstanding! Don’t take offense, please!”

Seeing how flustered Nines was suddenly while he fumbled for words in regard to how badly his statement could’ve been taken, Gavin simply lost it internally.

_“Why is he so damn cute?!?!”_

Gavin cheerfully smiled as he eagerly took Nines’ hand in his own and got to his feet. “That sounds delicious, Nines!”

“It will be indeed, Gavin,” Nines said, and in no time, they descended the steps, and were both inside the kitchen once more.

As Gavin sat at the kitchen table, Nines began gathering the ingredients for the salad while speaking to Gavin as he presented each one.

“We will begin with placing four little cherry, juicy tomatoes-preferably organic tomatoes,” he washed them and set them down before Gavin while he continued on, “next, we need a cucumber, partially peeled, as the skin of the cucumber itself holds a lot of healing properties and vitamins within it.”

Setting the peeler down before Gavin, Nines pulled out a chair for himself as he got to work. One by one, more vegetables were brought forth, and soon, a wide range of beautiful colors decorated the kitchen table.

One green bell pepper, one medium red onion, Greek pitted Kalamata olives, some salt, four table spoons of extra virgin olive oil, two table spoons of red wine vinegar, eight delicious slices of creamy Greek feta cheese in blocks, and one table spoon of dried oregano were gathered into the dark brown salad bowl.

The colorful assortment of vegetables seemed to glow and bask in the delightful rays of the sun that kept generously pouring forth through the large windows and skylight high above in the kitchen ceiling. When the fresh vegetables sat long enough beneath the natural source of light, the remaining few water droplets upon them slowly evaporated and dried off, and the scent of the vegetables flew right into Gavin’s nostrils. The sensational effusions of the organic and natural products of the earth were enough to make him dizzy and sick with a sense of wanting, desiring, and raw hunger, and it wasn’t just enough to satiate the demands of his stomach alone…no, not when he glanced up and met his husband’s piercing gaze.

Gavin leaned back as he admired it all, and he smiled when Nines held up a hand and gasped, “Ah, the ambiance isn’t perfect enough…” turning around towards his office, Nines was gone for a few moments, and when he returned, he left the door wide open, and Gavin soon heard beautiful classical music playing.

He smiled brightly as he focused on the music and recognized it in no time. “I think I know this piece!! It plays in all the cheesy romance movies I used to watch!”

Nines snorted, “Cheesy romance indeed, Gavin,” he began thinly slicing the bell pepper into thin rings, “it’s Le Cygne-The Swan, by Saint-Saens!”

Gavin helped by cutting the red onion in half and thinly sliced it into half-moon pieces. “I’m sorry, Nines,” he giggled while the string instruments beautifully cried out into the kitchen from the office. “I didn’t mean to insult your taste in music…I’ve honestly always found it refreshing.”

Nines smirked at him while he grabbed the cherry tomatoes. “I’m not upset, Gavin,” he sliced the ends off of each one at a 45-degree angle while Gavin cut the partially peeled cucumber in half length-wise, then sliced it into thick halves as he dumped the pieces into the brown salad bowl.

“Good,” Gavin didn’t look to notice it at first, but Nines had poked a toothpick through both tomato pieces, connecting them together and forming a heart shape. He did this with another tomato, forming the perfect little red heart, and he slid them over towards Gavin before placing them on top of the other salad ingredients.

It was impossible to miss, but Gavin’s stubborn psychology pushed what Nines was doing-and creating-out of his mind. Clearing his throat and fumbling for his words awkwardly, Gavin mumbled out, “Do you think Elijah and Chloe are gonna be fine?”

Nines paused for a moment, and then offered the sincerest of smiles. “I assure you, Gavin,” he began softly, still slicing and decorating away at the red vegetables he held in his fingers, “Elijah Kamski is a very resourceful man, and at this moment we’re engaging in this conversation, he’s likely already in a safehouse of sorts.”

“That’s good to hear…”

Nines gave him a playful smile, “Indeed, and I admire your concern for others; it’s always been a trait I’ve deeply appreciated about you…”

Gavin was going to faint for sure, now.

The roughness of the chair he’d been seated upon, the thickness of the table as it pressed against his arms and chest, neither the beating hot rays of the sun hovering in the beautiful skies above his head wasn’t at all enough to keep him conscious; not when Nines had confessed to something so intense and unreal. He himself hadn’t even taken notice of his traits and qualities, but Nines had??

Unreal!

Feeling bold enough to look up at Nines, Gavin nearly cried out in a mixture of surprise, and awe. The way the sun beamed directly above and behind Nines’ broad shoulders seemed to make him not only stand out in the daylight, but it seemed to highlight every grand feature he had. His eyes-which long ago to Gavin had seemed cold, cruel, and menacing-were now scintillating and magnificent. They pulled and drew Gavin into them, making it impossible for the detective’s attention to be directed elsewhere. His husband’s hair color and facial hair color even seemed two shades lighter, and Gavin found he liked it. It was so radiant and divine how when Nines tilted his head in just the right position and manner, the sun engulfed his figure, and his eyebrows and eyelashes seemed to hold a slight reddish tinge mixed in with the brown. Even his light brown freckles appeared to dance upon his skin, and they were almost perfectly scattered about his skin. It wasn’t much, and it wasn’t underwhelming at all; it just complimented every feature he had.

The look Nines held in his eyes also seemed so surreal, and Gavin felt his mind and heart reeling from it. Nines’ eyelids closed down over his eyeballs a little, and it was as if he’d been really focusing intently on only Gavin. His eyes seemed moist and dewy, his lips curled upwards slowly into a natural and gentle smile, and his forehead lines and muscles relaxed as he stared at Gavin. Just as he was, he’d proven Gavin wrong, and that broke away from every stereotype Gavin ever held about androids when they were first introduced into the market and into society. He’d always considered them completely incapable of ever understanding and identifying with human emotions, and yet, here sat an android right before himself, and he was more than perfectly able to display his emotions, reveal the truth of them to Gavin, and he wasn’t afraid at all on how it all reflected.

Nines was brave.

There was no other way for Gavin to describe it, but he really found and learned that his husband was one of the bravest people he’d ever met.

As the music calmly played on in the background, Gavin saw the red tomatoes, and he looked up momentarily and froze. They were such beautifully shaped, exquisite little hearts, and Nines worked on the third, placing it right beside the other two while smiling kindly and fondly at Gavin. Something in Gavin’s mind didn’t want to believe what was happening, but when Nines sliced the fourth and final tomato and made it form another perfect heart shape, Gavin understood now what was happening.

_“This is how he’s expressing how he feels for me…he’s showing his feelings this way…I just wish…I wish he could also just tell me how he feels about me…why can’t he say it???”_

It wasn’t that Gavin didn’t appreciate what Nines was doing for him; he found it quite romantic and lovely, but he preferred hearing it directly from Nines instead of the little flirtatious games they’d engaged in over the last few days especially. As much as Gavin enjoyed them all, he had to wonder just how much of it was a part of reality, and how much of it was just Nines being kind to him after their arguments…

 _“If he pities me, then he’ll be the one who’s sorry!”_ Gavin groused internally, _“I don’t need anyone’s pity!!”_

Their past considered, Gavin had to entertain the possibility and idea that Nines was truly just being compassionate and empathetic, and he wasn’t at all being romantic. They’d been through a lot together, and Gavin’s life was still in jeopardy. Perhaps this was Nines’ way of keeping a close watch on him, but also doing endearing and sweet things so as to keep Gavin by his side and out of harm’s way…

He didn’t want to revert to and stay on the path toward negative thinking, but Gavin promised himself he wasn’t going to ever fall for another straight man again. It never worked out, and he wasn’t a fool. All his life while working hard on hiding who he truly was, he’d been so careful to tip toe around the issue of falling for his heterosexual best friends in school, and he’d been so well guarded and protective over his own emotions that he never let anyone get too close anyway. It’d all worked out so well for years, but then his heart had to go and betray him, and he knew he had fallen for Nines almost over two weeks ago. He didn’t know when and how specifically it’d happened, but it had, and the best thing he wanted to do for himself was keep it private, but there was just no way he could control anything…not with the way Nines was looking at him, how he was treating him, how he stared at him as if he was the only man left in the world…no, the most _beautiful_ man in the world!

Nines pushed the last heart-shaped tomato over to Gavin, offering it up like a rose, and he smiled at Gavin, not blinking or moving for almost a full minute as the music played on and grew gentle. Something about the way the music surrounded them while Nines stared longingly into Gavin’s eyes did something to him. Something deep inside Gavin shifted, and then snapped like a single twig breaking deep in the forest. Before he knew it, he’d gotten up from his chair, and he threw down the knife and items he’d been cutting and preparing.

“Gavin?” Nines made to follow him, but Gavin was faster. He ran up the stairs and towards his room without another word, slamming and locking his bedroom door behind himself.

He fell onto his bed, clutching at his hair and head as his forced himself not to cry.

_“Why can’t he just tell me how he feels?!?! Why??!?! Why won’t he ever just say it?!?”_

{---@```---@```---}

 

**Gavin R: I’m not having a good day.**

**Raoul: whats up?**

**Gavin R: hubbie’s acting weird.not sure if i shud tell u**

**Raoul: u can tell me anything…hows work? u ok? stressed?**

**Gavin R: not so much stressed…just…i dunno. The stupid case is just too much to handle in the middle of all this.**

**Raoul: any leads so far on it?**

**Gavin R: no, but im sure the Ouroboros really are after me this time.**

**Raoul: wat makes u say that?**

**Gavin R: lets just say my hubbie’s friend came over earlier and told him…im screwed**

**Raoul: no ur not, Gavin. Everything will be ok, and im always here 4 u. just call me anytime…i still wanna see u…i cant stop thinkin about u…**

This was when Gavin nearly threw his phone down. He sighed instead, leaning back on his pillows as she shook his head in anguish and turmoil. Such a silly, wasted effort; as if Raoul could see it when they were only texting.

Once he’d regained his energy and patience, he held his phone up with both hands before his eyes, and he angrily texted out his next reply quickly.

**Gavin R: Raoul, im married man, u cant say these things to me.**

**Raoul: im telling you the truth…i think i have feelings for you, Gavin…wat shud i do?**

Gavin was continually forming his response in anger. **Gavin R: wat u need to do is understand that im a MARRIED MAN, you stupid son of a—** he immediately deleted it and groaned as he tried remaining calm. Insulting Raoul was only going to make it so that Gavin stooped to his level and wasn’t any better than him. He reminded himself to be the bigger and better person, and he knew he could do that if he remained as calm as possible.

Breathing in and out softly and deeply for a moment, he slowly texted out how he himself truly felt about this bizarre turn of events.

**Gavin R: look, Raoul, i understand ur not even sure if ur gay or bi, and that’s why i think its better for u to just stop messaging me so often and think about what u want. Its easy to get confused, and i totally get what ur going thru because i went thru it 2! legit, i was confused 4 soooooo many years!!! i just barely even came out 2 my parents, so u can imagine how tough this is!**

At least five minutes sped by before Raoul’s next response came.

**Raoul: i get what ur saying, but i swear i really do like you tho, Gavin…**

“Ughhhh!!!”

This time, Gavin did put his phone away, but it was more so because the doorbell rang downstairs, nearly giving him the heart attack of a lifetime. Who was it, now?!

Checking his clock, Gavin saw that it was nearly 9:30 PM, and he had to wonder who was at the door at this hour of the night. With extra caution in his steps, he opened his bedroom door and leaned over the second-floor railing. Nines was already making his way towards the door, and before Gavin could cry out at him to be careful, he’d thrown open the front door and smiled brightly.

“Connor, Tina!” he laughed warmly and cheerfully, “I’m so glad you two could make it!”

 _“Waaaaaaaaaaaat?!?!?!”_ What were Connor and Tina Chen doing here?!? This had to be a weird dream!

Gavin ran down the stairs as he stood beside Nines, ignoring the confused looks Nines gave him. Connor enveloped him in a gentle hug while Tina squealed as she held up a plastic bag. “Hey Gav Gav!” she greeted him in the silly nickname she’d given him many months ago, “how’re you doing?”

Gavin smiled as Connor danced around him playfully. “Hope you don’t mind us intruding, Gavin,” Connor smirked, “but Nines said you needed a ‘guy’s and girl’s night in’….whatever that means?”

Suddenly remembering what Kamski had said about Chloe having a girl’s day out, Gavin looked shyly at Nines as he moved out of the way so Connor and Tina could enter the house. “Umm, yeah,” he scratched the back of his neck while Nines took Connor’s blue spring coat and Tina’s blazer, “I guess I did need some people over for company…”

Connor beamed at him proudly, “Well! That’s what we’re here for!! Right Tina?”

The Asian woman grinned as she leaned her head on Connor’s shoulder. “That’s right Connie!”

Gavin’s two friends eagerly ran inside the large house, pulling him along with them. Tina’s bright red mini skirt clung tightly to her frame, and Connor was wearing blue skinny jeans and a pink golf shirt as they ran around until they entered the large library. Nines lingered behind them, momentarily leaning against the doorway until Tina beckoned him in.

“Don’t be shy, Nines!” she giggled, “you’re also invited to hang out here with us!”

Nines smiled politely, “I’ll only stay if Gavin allows it.”

Rolling his eyes, Gavin shrugged, “You may as well get your ass in here, Nines, before I drag you in myself!”

Nines walked inside wordlessly, and he sat down at a large book nook by a window. He grabbed a random book off one of the shelves and began reading while Tina and Connor plopped themselves down on the floor beside Gavin. Tina pulled out a makeup kit from the bag she’d brought with her and giggled excitedly when Gavin’s eyes widened.

Gavin stared at the kit and laughed, “You’re meanin’ to tell me that you and Connor drove all this way to do your makeup, Tina?”

She giggled as she shook her head, “Nope!” she inched closer to Gavin, “we’re doing yours!!!”

Connor nodded, “Yep! It’s time you got a makeover, Gavin!”

As they all laughed and giggled, Nines sighed as he lowered the book he was reading. “Must you three be so loud?” he held the book up a little, then, “I _am_ trying to read, you irresponsible children!”

Gavin stuck his tongue out while Connor opened the makeup kit. As Tina grabbed the foundation brush, Nines paced up to them and picked up her iPod touch. “Do you mind if I play some music, Tina?”

She smiled sweetly, “Not at all.”

Soon, Nines had put on gentle classical music, and Tina smirked as Gavin tried guessing who the composure was.

“I swear,” he began, “this has gotta be Bach!”

Nines rolled his eyes while Tina corrected him. “Nope! It’s Claude Debussy’s Arabesque numero ooooneee!”

Nines clapped proudly, “Excellent, Tina.”

Gavin gaped at her, “How the hell did you—”

“I grew up in an Asian home, Gavin,” she sighed as if the answer had been written plainly on the walls, “my mom made me learn like four different musical instruments before I was barely eight years old.”

Connor held up a finger, “Racial stereotypes!”

They all burst into laughter as the gentle, soothing piano filled the room. It was so lovely and serene that Gavin closed his eyes while Connor and Tina cleaned his face and then moisturized it. They took their time with his skin as they made sure it was clean and soft before Tina began applying lip liner for him. She was delicate and gentle, making sure the lines were neat and perfect as she traced his pink, supple lips and took her time with it.

“Sup. Fam?” Soon, Shelley had flown into the room, beeping as she greeted them all excitedly.

Tina and Connor gasped, and then smiled as they reached out and pet her when they realized she was super friendly.

Gavin smiled, “That’s Shelley!”

“She’s so cute!” Tina cooed at her, and then gasped as an idea formed in her head, flickering behind her eyes like a light in the dark. “Gaaaaviiin!” she cried out excitedly, “I have just the very thing for her!”

Connor sighed, “Oh boy…”

Tina grabbed a single fake eyelash from the makeup kit. She turned to Shelley, holding a hand beneath her head while Shelley tilted her head up at Tina. “Hold still, girl,” Tina murmured, applying the glue to the eyelash, and then gently placed it right above Shelley’s single eye slit. It surprisingly fit perfectly, and it gave off the appearance that she now had eyelashes that fluttered upwards beautifully.

Tina flashed her two thumbs up, “Looking great, girl!! Love it!”

Shelley gently rubbed her head on Tina’s shoulder in a show of gratitude. “Thanks. Dollie. I. Freakin’. Love. This. Shit!”

Nines sighed while the music slowed down and then sped up again, matching his emotions, no doubt. He kept on reading, however, and Gavin felt Connor grabbing his chin as he held his head firmly in place for Tina to be able to apply the lip gloss onto his lips. As she gently applied it, Gavin then saw Connor going over the different colors of eyeshadow while Tina took the cap off her liquid eyeliner.

“Hurry up, Connor,” she urged, “pick a color before the eyeliner runs dry!!”

“I’m thinking, I’m thinking!!” Connor grumbled back before he finally pointed down at a good shade of deep blue eye shadow. “This one!!!”

Tina seemed to agree with his choice. “I like it!” she exclaimed excitedly, “it’ll go with his eyes for sure…”

As they got to work by applying the foundation and filler over his skin, Connor applied the eye shadow gently, massaging it and working it over his upper eyelid. Tina said she wanted to put on the eyeliner last, and as Connor worked the brush over Gavin’s skin, he closed his eyes and felt at ease. This was all thanks to Nines…Nines had invited his friends over, and he’d allowed them to enjoy themselves right there in the library at 10 PM in the night while they chatted softly and giggled.

Gavin had never felt so happy before, and he once again had to attribute that to his husband. Where Gavin had once again been so angry with Nines, the android managed to somehow redeem himself by going above and beyond for Gavin.

_“He did this for me…to make ME happy…”_

With his heart filled with love and joy beating steadily, Gavin heard Tina cry out for him to open his eyes so she could apply the mascara and eyeliner. He obeyed her, trying not to blink a lot while she ran the liquid eyeliner tip over his eyelids and made his eyes and eye shadow pop out even more. Shelley watched the entire time, choosing to sit on Connor’s lap as they worked on Gavin’s skin.

As she completed her work, Tina then put her makeup kit and tools down and pulled out a small pocket mirror. She held it up before Gavin. “Take a look for yourself!!”

Gavin peered at his own reflection in the mirror, and he was astonished. He looked wonderful, and he loved how perfectly Tina and Connor had applied his makeup. This had been the first time he’d ever applied makeup on his face, but he loved it.

Connor smirked, “Not bad for drag, huh?” Shelley purred in his lap, as if giving her own seal of approval as well.

Gavin saw long legs approaching from behind in the mirror, and then Nines leaned down as he stared at Gavin’s face. His eyes grew wide as he wheezed out, “Merlin’s beard!” he then shook his head in disbelief, “Officer Chen! What in the name of Poseidon have you done to my husband’s face?!?”

“I. Think. He. Looks. Fab!” Shelley chimed in with her own opinion, and Connor stroked her back as he nodded in agreement.

“It’s a good look!” Tina clapped, “I think I did a good job!”

Nines huffed, “It’s passable.”

Gavin sighed as he leaned his back against the couch behind him. “Oh, stop it, guys,” he snickered, “you’re makin’ a girl feel special.”

Shaking his head at them, Nines grabbed the book he’d been reading, and he bid them all a goodnight as he retired to his room. Connor and Tina stuck around a little longer, taking silly and goofy selfies with Gavin until he’d laughed so hard his lip gloss had smeared on his teeth. Later on, they watched a short movie, and then Tina said she had to go back home to get some rest before their next work day tomorrow. Connor was going to drive her back, and he gave Gavin a small hug as the shorter man walked them out to Tina’s parked car in the driveway.

Once they were away from the house, Tina squealed as she grabbed Gavin by the shirt collar and yanked him forward. She whispered quickly into his ear while Connor listened in. “Did you see how Nines was staring at you when I was doing your makeup?!?!”

Gavin snorted, “Of course I couldn’t see it, Tina! You were doin’ my damn makeup, you silly gal.”

Connor smiled, “Ah, but it’s true, Gavin! Nines couldn’t take his eyes off you at all!”

Gavin pointed at his own face, “That’s likely because of the makeup!” he shook his head, “come on, guys, don’t give me false hope here! He was probably starin’ at Tina as she worked on my face, that’s all!!”

Both Connor and Tina shook their heads. “No, Gavin,” Connor vehemently said, “I’m telling you he really was looking at you, and anytime I tried sneaking a glance at him, he’d go back to pretending he was reading his book!”

“Yes!” Tina cut in, “and he didn’t even flip a single page of the book! He didn’t get _any_ reading done!!”

Gavin held out both hands, trying to get his friends to calm the hell down. “Okay, _maybe_ that means something, and _maybe_ it doesn’t, guys,” he said evenly as he stared at them both for a few moments. “I think you guys are reading a bit too much into this, but that’s—”

He was interrupted by Connor placing a hand on his shoulder. Giving him a reassuring shake, Connor was all smiles as he kept his voice down. “Gavin, trust me, Nines had hearts in his eyeballs for you!”

Tina nodded as well, “Your husband really, _really_ likes you, Gavin,” she looked up at the second-level of the house, and Gavin looked up there as well. Lights were already on, presumably in Nines’ bedroom.

Tina gave him a gentle pat on the back. “He likes you, and you like him, Gavin…just be honest with yourself.”

 _“I would, but in the unlikely event that you guys are wrong, I just don’t want to be hurt!!”_ He didn’t know how to say this out loud, so he chose not to. Instead, he decided to hang onto the one hope that Nines really was into him as much as his friends claimed he was.

He gave Tina and Connor another round of hugs as he bid them goodnight for now.

“I’ll see you both in the morning, okay?”

They got in the car, and Connor waved at him. “Everything will be fine, Gavin!”

“We promise you!!” Tina cried out, blowing him a few kisses as Connor backed out of the driveway and they soon disappeared into the night.

Slowly making his way back inside the house, Gavin felt his thoughts pulling him in a hundred different directions-a horrible emotional tug of war-as he went over the events of the night. Nines had indeed done whatever was possibly and necessary to keep him happy. He knew this for a fact. While he was still troubled by uncertainty over Nines clearly stating how he felt, Gavin supposed that perhaps Nines had chosen to show how he felt; not just relied on accomplishing this through the use of words…

Words were great and the soul of communication, but actions and deeds? Those left permanent memories and engraved themselves in a person’s mind and heart.

Nines had done this, and he’d done it for Gavin.

This wonderful knowledge encouraged and emboldened Gavin. As he stepped back inside the dark house, he marched up towards the staircase, but then stopped midway.

_“If I’m gonna do this, I have to set something right, first and foremost…”_

He walked down the hallway quickly, heading straight for the fridge. When he reached it, he bent down to the freezer compartment, and his hands pushed around the other frozen food there until they’d found what he was looking for.

Holding the cold item tightly in his hands, Gavin knew he should’ve done this a long time ago. It was overdue, but he found comfort in the age-old saying: ‘Better late than never’.

As he backed up towards the garbage can, Gavin opened it quickly, throwing away the strawberry-vanilla cake deep down into it.

Now, he was going to be able to join his husband upstairs with a peace of mind.

* * *

 

 I've also included ANOTHER version of Shelley my sweet, younger sister drew! This is how Shelley looks for this chapter with her new eyelashes and makeover!! Ain't she a cutie???  
Love you sis, thank you for your beautiful work! 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everyone was too cute in this chapter. I mean WAY TOO CUTE.  
> Nines inviting Gavin's friends over, and they gave him a well-deserved makeover?  
> I'm all on that shit, 100%. 
> 
> Glad Gavin tossed Raoul's cake out into the trash. I think we all know what this means for Raoul x Gavin lol 
> 
> And I also think we all know what's going to happen in the next chapter, but allow me to give you all a hint using my emojis.
> 
> 😱👅👅🍆🥒💦💦💦


	37. A Most Beloved Night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my god. It's finally happened. 
> 
> The smex. 💞💞🔥🔥🔥🔥💦💦💦💦
> 
> As always, NSFW content is below, so read away at your own discretion, folks!

After washing the makeup off his face, Gavin stood before Nines’ closed bedroom door. Gavin saw light beneath the bedroom door which happened to be the only thing left between his body and his husband’s. Reaching up with a clammy hand, he knocked on the door once, and he saw Nines’ shadow moving beneath the doorframe as he approached. The door swung open, revealing that Nines had his shirt clean off.

Such a delightful sight Gavin found he could feast on for days and never grow weary of it. Nines’ rectus abdominus muscles were quite prominent in the light, and his serratus anterior muscles delicately outlined his physical frame. He could’ve walked right out of a male model magazine, but Gavin knew he was more perfect than that and to compare Nines to those models was a crime.

Looking at his husband basking in the warm light of the room, Gavin’s mind turned into a blank slate then. Nines eyed him a little cautiously before smiling gently. “Gavin? What’s wrong?”

“N-nothing,” Gavin stammered out slowly, unable to take his eyes off Nines’ toned chest and abs, “everything’s p-p-perfect…” he’d meant it in so many ways, and perhaps Nines understood, or perhaps he didn’t. Either way, he smiled as he stepped away from the door.

“Would you like to come in?”

“Yes,” Gavin’s answer came too quickly, and he blushed as he covered his desires with a cough.

Still smiling eagerly, Nines held open the door and ushered Gavin in with an open hand. As the shorter man walked in, he noticed that Nines was wearing black boxer shorts which were riding slightly lower on his perfect hips, and boy, did they ever look amazing on his body. Nines’ legs were lean, toned, and very long. Gavin naturally had a thing for men with long legs, and the way Nines was standing before him shirtless with his legs revealed, it made Gavin’s mouth practically water.

He was sure his eyes glazed over with lust, but Nines didn’t seem to really notice as he stood back and looked at Gavin’s chest. Gavin then noticed he was only wearing a thin t-shirt and jeans as well, and he suddenly felt so cold. He didn’t try to cover himself up, however; he merely stood firmly as he faced his husband.

Nines smiled, “Would you like to talk?”

 _“Very interesting question.”_ One thing Gavin did know was that he wanted Nines. If his mind had blocked that desire out before, seeing Nines shirtless with his soft, smooth, white skin practically glowing with passion in the light helped Gavin reach his final decision tonight. He wanted to kiss Nines all over and to touch him and to fuck him. He wanted to bask in Nines’ nascent sexuality, and he wanted to show him how good it could be. He wanted to hear Nines moan his name in passion so great they both lost control and in bliss so sweet that they could drown in it. Gavin was certain he wanted all those things, and he took a few steps backwards as he shut the bedroom door. He rested his back against it for a while as he just took time to study Nines’ bedroom slowly and carefully.

It appeared that there was more to the room than what Gavin had initially seen. Same way his own room connected to a private ‘study’ of sorts, Nines’ did as well. Beyond the Greek statues was a narrow hallway that was quite long. Gavin assumed it led directly to Nines’ private study, and he took a few steps forward to peek in through the glass walls beyond the hallway while Nines allowed him to venture forth.

When Gavin came to the end of the hallway, he saw on the left-hand side the interior of the other adjacent room. A brocade sofa and matching chair sat in front of a large fireplace. A large wooden desk sat in one corner, across from a door that presumably led into another bathroom, Gavin assumed. On either side of the fireplace stood three or four floor-to-ceiling dark, wooden bookcases over-filled with books and other large, thick texts, but Gavin had no interest in those, now. He turned back down the hall and made his way to Nines, where he found the android leaning against the edge of his bed as he smiled at Gavin.

Gavin blushed deep pink, “It’s all clear, now…”

Nines grinned, though the lust poured forth liberally through every tiny glance he took at Gavin. Beaming at the shorter male, Nines purred deeply in a content tone, “Are you sure?”

Gavin noticed that Nines had taken a step towards him, but he didn’t back away. “Yeah,” he smiled down at their feet, “I’m pretty satisfied in that department, at least…”

“Hmm,” Nines hummed, still inching closer to Gavin, “that would imply that there’s still some things you require, Gavin…” the way Nines was whispering Gavin’s name seemed like he was making love to it, and Gavin practically fell into Nines’ chest. He couldn’t help that his mind had conjured up plenty of naughty things he wanted to do with Nines and have Nines do to him specifically that would be a part of satisfying them both.

As if reading his thoughts clearly like an open book, Nines gently placed a hand on the back of Gavin’s neck, pulling him closer to his body.

Inside, Gavin’s heart leapt up to his forehead, practically. _“This time, there’s no one to interrupt us…this is happening, and it’s happening now!”_

His eyes fluttered shut, and when Nines leaned in and pressed his forehead down against Gavin’s, the shorter man felt the slight tickle of the stray bang that always hung down on Nines’ forehead. It was now rubbing against his own skin, and Gavin repressed a shiver as he leaned up and gently rubbed the tip of his nose over his husband’s. That must’ve done something to trigger a bit of a ‘rough’ side to Nines, and the android opened his eyes and stared down at Gavin with raw lust.

Gripping Gavin’s neck tightly now, Nines growled down wantonly at him, “Enough with the fucking foreplay, Gavin.”

“Wha—” it wasn’t even half a second before Nines slammed their mouths together and swallowed Gavin’s confused word whole. The moment their lips connected for the first time, Gavin really had to fight and struggle to keep himself from swooning. And to think; they hadn’t done this sooner. His mind swam with regret, but that was a momentary, fleeting thought. Nines was kissing him as if he didn’t want to ever stop, and as if he didn’t know how to. Gavin pressed their bodies closer together, gently pushing Nines against the edge of the bed as his hands roamed over Nines’ bare chest.

Nines felt perfect. He was built in the ways Gavin always desired a man to be built in, and he could’ve sworn he felt his hands on fire and burning as he slid them over his husband’s pectorals and midriff. He was unable to stop himself from moving his hands back over Nines’ shoulders and shoulder blades, feeling how firm and strong they felt whenever Nines moved and shifted, flexing them and working them with great strength and agility.

His mind ran in circles and hung on sensual thoughts of Nines moving behind him, over him, beneath him, and those muscles would clench and flex beautifully as he did things to Gavin he’d always dreamt of. He couldn’t stop himself from moaning as he thought about these sensual fantasies, and Nines gently bit his lower lip. This made Gavin move his hands down to however over the waistband of the boxers Nines was wearing, and he gently began tugging on it desperately.

Nines answered by kissing him, hard, and he grabbed Gavin’s shoulders and threw him down onto the large bed behind them. Gavin was surprised, but quickly surrendered to the kiss. Gods, this was what he had been waiting for and needed all along. Nothing could even compare to this kiss and the intensity of it, and all the minor experiences Gavin had shared in his youth with other men were immediately forgotten and thrown out the window. He had Nines, now, and his husband really knew what to do without a second thought, and his mouth attacked Gavin’s once he lowered his body over the shorter man’s. Gavin deeply moaned. When his husband’s velvety tongue swiped over his lips, he lost all his doubts and opened his mouth greedily to allow it access. Nines’ tongue plunged deeply and sensually into his mouth, and then, fuck, yes! Someone moaned loudly and they moved together, and Gavin was back up onto his feet and dragged over until his back hit a wall a little roughly. He didn’t mind it; not even when the back of his skull had lightly bashed against the thick wall. It created more pleasure and tension for Gavin, and as Nines cradled the back of his head soothingly, almost in an apology for how roughly he’d handled him, Gavin bit his chin.

Nines nipped back, and then gently kissed and licked Gavin’s chin before he roughly reclaimed his mouth. But Nines soon wanted to explore the rest of his husband’s body. His lips torched Gavin’s skin as he showered and peppered his face with gentle and loving pecks that drove the shorter man crazy with want and desire in no time. Nines kissed his forehead from left-to-right, lips lingering over Gavin’s temple softly. Unable to take the teasing, Gavin answered the soothing touches with a moan and drew Nines’ mouth towards his own lips greedily again. He wanted-no, needed-more of that tongue.

Nines lavished as much attention unto Gavin as he could. He seemed to know and anticipate where Gavin’s erogenous, responsive zones were immediately. He mapped them out with his fingertips first, ghosting and skating them along Gavin’s neck, and behind his ears sensually. Gavin’s body hairs were on ends as he nuzzled his face against Nines’ neck, administering sloppy kisses and nibbles there whenever he could. In between moans, he felt Nines tenderly kissing and sucking his clavicle until it was slightly pink from his oral ministrations. Nines still wasn’t stopping; he moved down to gently pull Gavin’s shirt off his torso, and he threw it down to the floor while Gavin pressed his bare chest against Nines’ now.

Skin against skin finally was such a huge relief for them both. They sighed out in unison, just enjoying how close they now were, but then Nines gripped Gavin’s shoulders while Gavin’s hands were busy with latching onto his husband’s wonderfully defined hips. He admired them for many long seconds, just feeling how strong and firm they were, and he took in a sharp breath as he slid a hand down beneath the shorts. What Gavin felt there was pure firmness and flesh, and he moaned softly as he gave Nines’ length an experimental squeeze.

This was his first time with an android, and while he’d passed through his experimental years with other men in his youth while at college much in this similar way, it still paled in comparison to how Nines felt in his hand. Life surged and coursed through him, and his length responded in kind to the touches Gavin bestowed upon it. Nines pressed down on Gavin’s shoulder, massaging him tenderly and firmly, encouragement shining in his eyes as Gavin tried to push down the boxer shorts right until he felt Nines gently running his fingers through his hair.

Spinning Nines around so his back was against the wall, now, Gavin slowly sank down to his knees until they were hitting the floor. Gavin’s heart was racing, and he couldn’t believe he was about to do this, but he wanted to do it with Nines first. He’d seen plenty of movies and an embarrassing amount of porn when he was alone and single in his younger days, but he had no genuine clue on how to really blow a guy. It wasn’t the same as masturbating and fondling himself in the shower; this was going to be messy, and Gavin found he didn’t mind it. He only hoped that Nines wouldn’t notice how shy and unsure he was about himself before he even began.

Pushing Nines’ legs slightly apart, Gavin finally had his husband where he wanted him, and he started a little exploration of his own, not pushing or rushing it. He moved his hand down over the man’s body until he reached his cock tenting high beneath the fabric of the boxer shorts. Even without seeing it fully, Gavin felt his mouth drying up as his fingers turned cold. Nines was fucking huge. Somehow, he’d expected it when he’d previously fantasized about his husband, but to be almost face-to-face with it was entirely different. He knew his hands were shaking, but he still wanted to do this, and he wanted to please Nines until they were both equally spent.

Gavin began massaging and stroking Nines through the boxers first. While Nines moaned, he helped Gavin a little by showing him where he wanted to be touched. Guiding Gavin’s hand beneath his own, he wormed his hand inside his own boxers as well, and wrapped his fingers around his length. Fuck, yes, that was it. With their hands together, Nines helped Gavin stroke up and down the shaft and moved further down to fondle the balls.

Gavin thought Nines never had looked so attractive and beautiful as he stared down passionately into Gavin’s own eyes and showed him how to explore his body. Nines eventually stepped out of the boxers boldly, never once taking his eyes off Gavin as he threw him ardent and concupiscent glances. Gavin’s body temperature skyrocketed just from the looks his husband gave him alone, and it was enough to drive him into a sexual frenzy. His eyes fell down between Nines’ long legs to capture the sight of tumescent, heavy flesh. It was perfect. Nines truly could’ve been an underwear model, practically. Gavin realized he was blushing over the state of his husband’s penis, but he found he just couldn’t help it.

Size didn’t particularly matter to Gavin, but oh yes, Nines was just so damn perfect.

His husband was at least well over the inches of a length he’d desired in a future partner, and he had to stare away at it until Nines chuckled deeply. This made Gavin blush even more, but he still wanted to keep his eyes focused, in case he missed a single thing. He’d even forgotten to breathe, but Nines rubbed his shoulders and back as he looked down at him, eyes never blinking.

Knowing his husband had been quite taken by his impressive length, Nines couldn’t help but smile. “Like that, do you?”

Gavin whined, and then shuddered almost imperceptibly, unable to find words to answer. _“Yes, yesssss, if only you knew, Nines…”_ A strange, relentless mass of energy was building in Gavin’s body; a feeling that wasn’t quite numbness; a tingling like blood rushing back into a sleeping limb, except this was feeling was centered around his—

Oh no.

He truly was aroused…

Violent, uncontrollable feelings-old and new-whipped around his mind with gale force, decimating his common sense. His mind was a vortex, a howling storm of chaos and hunger, and the eye of the storm, the source, the singularity, was Nines…only Nines!

Not wanting to keep either of them waiting any longer, Gavin gently grabbed onto Nines’ hips, and while his husband pressed a firm hand down on his shoulder, Gavin leaned forward closer. Slowly, he lowered his head and moved his mouth closer to the erect penis. He gave it a few experimental licks. It twitched, and he gasped. He’d never done this before, but he found himself enjoying every new thing he discovered as Nines reacted to him nicely.

Nines wasn’t pushy with Gavin, but he intoned what he wanted as he gently pressed a hand against Gavin’s cheek, guiding it towards his length further. Gavin sighed, gently rubbing and stroking the back of Nines’ toned, strong thighs. No further hesitation lay within himself, and Gavin wrapped his mouth around the tip of Nines’ firm cock.

Nines hummed deeply, and the sound was so rich in tone and color as it vibrated and rumbled deep in his chest. It almost shook Gavin, and he could feel it as he lightly sucked Nines, taking his time to grow accustomed to his length in his mouth. He didn’t know what to do, but nature soon took over, and he gently lapped and licked away at the tip while Nines stared down fondly at him. This seemed to add fuel to what he was already doing, and unable to stop himself from wanting a deeper taste, Gavin began tonguing the slit of his husband’s cock.

Nines was perfectly delectable and beyond wet already in his mouth. He didn’t want things to be over so soon, however, and the android pulled back a little while pushing down on the back of Gavin’s neck as gently as possible.

Understanding what his husband wanted, Gavin moved his head lower to nip playfully at the android’s balls. He found he rather enjoyed feeling the weight of them in his mouth and played with them a little longer. After a while, he moved back to the shaft and was soon bobbing his head up and down, creating his own sensual rhythm. He couldn’t get it very far inside his throat yet, but from the way the balls drew up, he could tell from how firm and thick Nines’ cock grew even more in his mouth that he was doing a good job.

Before Gavin could take Nines into his mouth further, he was yanked up to his feet as Nines gripped his shoulders.

“Wah—” lips were slammed down over his, and Gavin sighed into the sweet kisses Nines was bestowing upon him. He pulled down on the back of his husband’s neck, trying to get closer, but then Nines slid a hand down his back, hovering right over the swell of his ass. Gavin hissed impatiently, biting down on the tip of his husband’s tongue, perhaps a little impulsively.

Suddenly, Nines tore his mouth away from Gavin’s. “Off,” he panted out before plunging his tongue back in Gavin’s mouth. Feeling those fingers wrap around his waist before they hovered over the waistband of his jeans, Gavin moaned as he struggled with the undergarments. Nines made an impatient noise in the back of his throat and his fingers joined Gavin’s in their attempt to open his fly when Gavin couldn’t do it by himself. Without much of an effort, Nines had it open in seconds, and wormed his hand into Gavin’s boxers to grip his shaft. He touched it just so tenderly, and…

“Fuuuck!!” Gavin arched into the touch, and Nines wrapped his free hand around Gavin’s back and shoulders. He pressed a few kisses to his neck before he held Gavin close.

It wasn’t too long before their mouths were at the mercy of one another, and Gavin couldn’t stop. He kissed, and kissed, and kissed, and kissed Nines like his life depended on it, and he didn’t seem to want to stop, not until Nines gently cupped his cheek in a hand while trying to gently break away.

“Heavens,” Nines panted as he tore his mouth away again. “Bed. Now.”

Somehow, the urgency and raw desire in his voice helped, and they made it to the bed swiftly, while Nines shed the rest of Gavin’s clothes along the way. When they bumped against the edge of the bed, Gavin shyly looked down at both their arousals inches away from one another, though his was still partially clothed by his boxers. In seconds, those were gone, too.

“Lie down,” Nines whispered against his throat, which he had just been sucking.

He got down on the bed back-first, and Gavin did as he was told and moved further up. Nines was watching him with dark, very dark, eyes, and the sight made Gavin’s cock-if possible-even harder.

Gracefully, Nines climbed on top of him and straddled his knees. “I’m going to suck your cock,” he panted down at Gavin in a needy grumble. He then took the tumescent flesh in his hands for emphasis, “And you _will_ scream for me, my darling Gavin.”

“Fuck, yes,” Gavin moaned, the images and mental pictures already forming deliciously in his mind.

Nines smirked at him and then swallowed his cock whole without even warning Gavin ahead of time. Since it had been so abrupt, Gavin did scream, then. Not knowing what to expect and what it would feel like, he arched off the bed, moaned, shuddered and sobbed while Nines did wicked things with his tongue. Gavin didn’t understand how Nines knew how to do this when he himself never had any relationship, but he supposed this was where the ‘android programming’ came into place.

Given how Nines was lapping at his heated flesh like it happened to be the most delicious dessert or treat, it took Gavin an embarrassing short amount of time to come. He didn’t even know how it’d happened, but he shivered and shook as he exploded inside that hot wet mouth that was obscenely moving up and down his length. Gavin didn’t like how he’d been spent like he was a teenager all over again, but Nines didn’t seem to mind at all. In fact, he looked rather smug as he licked his lips and grinned down at Gavin the entire time while he braced his weight up on one hand.

Gavin looked away for a moment, afraid that he would shatter and break if he kept staring into Nines’ eyes. “Y-you…how d-did you d-d-do that s-so well?”

Nines merely smirked, “I know many things, Gavin…does this surprise you?”

“No…” Gavin shook his head as he wiped sweat off his forehead he never knew had gathered there in the first place. “I liked it a lot…”

Nines leaned down to bite and nip at Gavin’s inner thigh, and it made the shorter man groan as his stomach and abdomen muscles twitched and flexed. He was growing slightly hard again, but it was going to take a little more from Nines before Gavin was fully erect again. He gently stroked Nines’ hair and scalp while Nines kissed and sucked at Gavin’s thighs. Humming deeply, Nines tore his mouth away from the pink flesh and smirked at him. “Indeed. As it happens, I am very well acquainted with your cock.”

The powerful android moved up to Gavin and kissed him deeply. The taste of himself combined with that of his husband’s tongue was absolutely wonderful, and Gavin whimpered when Nines moved away.

He stared up at Nines, whose hair was all over the place. His face looked blotchy and red and his lips were swollen, but to Gavin, he looked perfect.

“Can I suck you off again?” he asked, and he momentarily wondered just how impulsive he was getting to be around Nines as of late.

Nines grinned mischievously, “You already have done it before…”

“No,” Gavin argued, “I want to please you just as you pleased me…” he looked down between their bodies shyly, their shared wetness gleaming in the light, “please let me, Nines…”

“How could I say no to you, obstinate brat,” Nines chuckled as he smiled a little, “so I finally managed to _penetrate_ that thick skull of yours, hmm? Very well then.” He lay down on his back and waited for Gavin to make the next move.

Gavin liked that Nines wasn’t pushing him. Emboldened by the fact that he could take his time, he knelt on the bed and stared at the sight of his magnificent husband laid out in front of him. He had seen it before, but he still thought the firm cock jutting above into the air was absolutely gorgeous. He moved closer and licked it all the way from the balls to the head. When Nines’ breath hitched, he smiled.

Slowly, he moved his mouth over the head and started sucking.

“Damn,” Nines moaned softly, and then he leaned forward just a little. “A little harder, Gavin... and if you move your hands like this then...ahhh…yes!”

With Nines’ directions, Gavin felt more confident in himself and soon had a steady rhythm going. He couldn’t take his husband’s thick length very far into his throat yet, but he used his hands to stroke the rest of the shaft and fondle the balls, encouraged by the deliciously sweet sounds coming from his husband’s mouth. He really must’ve been doing a good job, for at some point, he felt Nines tug at his hair. He remained where he was, head bobbing as he sucked deeply, and was rewarded with a loud, passionate cry of, “Gaaaavin!!”

Nines then came, and it was a sight Gavin wanted to see over and over again. He knew he’d never grow weary of it; not when Nines twisted, and his muscles flexed as he jerked off the bed and came deeply in his mouth. It literally tasted like nothing, and Gavin was surprised. If it always left no taste, no substance, no essence, perhaps oral sex was going to be something they could do quite often. Gavin didn’t manage to swallow it all yet, but Nines didn’t seem to mind when he tugged Gavin up on the bed and crashed their mouths together.

The kiss was raw, biting, violent, and it was perfect. It was one of the best ways Nines knew how to kiss, and he poured all his emotions into it as he ran a hand through Gavin’s hair and simply enjoyed their closeness.

When the kiss became less heated, Gavin broke away with a sigh. “I suppose you want me to go now?” he asked softly.

Nines gently rolled him over to lay down beside him on the bed, and he kissed Gavin’s forehead as he sighed. “If you aren’t comfortable here, then I shan’t stop you from leaving to—”

Gavin gripped his chin in a hand, forcing Nines to pause in his rambling and long-winded answer. Gavin giggled, “Nines, straight forward answer: do you want me to stay here tonight by your side, or not?”

Nines pinched his ass, and Gavin’s teeth clamped down on his neck. Nines muttered something about androids not feeling pain, but Gavin still bit him playfully anyway. When he pulled away and looped a hand around Nines’ waist, his husband stared down at the limb draped over himself and smiled. “Of course I wish for you to remain here, Gavin.”

His smile was contagious, and Gavin chuckled, “It can always be like this, you know…”

Nines stared into his eyes and sighed in content as he draped an arm over Gavin in much the same way as the human had over his own body. “I know, but you should get some sleep now; it’s late.”

 _“So this is still a touchy subject, I guess…”_ Gavin tried not to show a lot of disappointment on his face, and he slid easily under the covers and pulled them over Nines as well when the android got beneath them with him. Their hands were still wrapped around each other, but Nines hadn’t closed his eyes, yet. He stared at Gavin for a few awkwardly silent moments before Gavin couldn’t take it. He saw the dark and confused look crossing over Nines’ handsome features, but he chose not to comment on it.

Perhaps they could address and argue over this at the first morning light.

For now, he really wanted to get some sleep, and he felt his eyelids growing heavy as his mind slowly slipped into a dream-like state.

But perhaps it wasn’t too much of a dream for Gavin to feel soft lips pressing themselves against his chest, right where his heart was steadily and calmly beating.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, shit, Gavin!😵👀🥒
> 
> Shit, Nines! 🍆👅👀


	38. Mercenaries

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> *WARNING ! Apparently Nines can't keep his hands (and other body parts) to himself.*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Allow me to introduce 7 new original characters and thus thickening my plot!!  
> I hope everyone likes them!! ^_^
> 
> Also, make sure you check out the special surprise one of my reader's added in for us all at the end of the chapter!

Gavin awoke the next morning with his head on something smooth-yet tough. He slowly blinked one eye open, then the second, and as he peered around, he saw that he was still on Nines’ bed, in his room, and he had his head laying over his husband’s chest…

_“This isn’t such an uncomfortable way to sleep!”_

The sun was peeking in through the blinds and curtains, and it revealed that Nines had his eyes closed, though Gavin wasn’t sure whether he was ‘asleep’…he knew androids went into ‘stasis’, and just in case Nines was still somehow cognizant and alert, Gavin gently and carefully moved his legs so they weren’t entangled within Nines’. As much as he loved that position, he didn’t want to make Nines uncomfortable more than he likely had. Though Gavin had to admit to himself, he’d slept so peacefully last night, much like an infant.

Memories of everything they’d done together-every fantasy they’d explored for the time being-suddenly came rushing back into Gavin’s head. He was unable to suppress a naughty grin as he thought about how good Nines felt and looked buck naked. In fact, he felt he needed to have another peek, and he was going to take anything he could get while Nines wasn’t watching him.

As Gavin studied Nines’ body above the sheet, he very slyly and sneakily slid the bed sheet down, and he took another curious peek at his husband’s naked body. Once again, as Gavin’s eyes feasted on the sight that was before him, he was reminded how happy he was and how grateful he was to be married to Nines. The android looked radiant in the morning light; his skin glowed perfectly, his LED light blinked randomly as his eyelids fluttered a little, and Gavin could bask in the sight of his smooth, clear skin for hours. He knew he would never grow tired of watching Nines.

His eyes eventually traveled down towards his abdomen, and he noticed that Nines had a navel, though the hole was mostly closed, and there likely for artificial and aesthetically pleasing purposes only. That still didn’t stop Gavin from reaching out and gently touching it, and he relished in how soft and smooth Nines’ skin was across his fingers. He lowered his hands, taking a peek between his husband’s legs, next, and his breath hitched in his throat when he finally saw his husband’s cock again.

Gavin realized that in the middle of the heated passion the previous night, he hadn’t really paid enough attention to his husband’s body as much as he’d liked to. But now, as Nines lay still, it was the best time. His eyes feasted on the semi-hard cock, and his eyes wandered down lower between Nines’ thighs, and nearly melted when he saw how long the frame of his entire legs were. He was perfect.

Taking a little peek up at Nines to see if he was watching him, Gavin raised his head above the sheets, and he suddenly was face-to-face with wide-open blue eyes.

Gavin gasped, practically frozen in fear, and Nines smiled. “Good morning, my dear.”

Gavin screamed as he threw the sheets aside, his face already aflame. “NINES!!” he cried in anger and mortification, “how long have you been starin’ at me?!?”

The android merely grinned playfully, “For as long as you were staring at my body, Gavin.”

Holding onto one of the pillows tightly as he shielded his face, Gavin growled, “You’re such a jerk sometimes, Nines!!!” Gavin didn’t know why, but he didn’t like that he’d been caught peeking at his husband’s body so openly.

Nines didn’t seem to share his mortification, however; he moved with the speed of lightning, lunging at Gavin and swooping down on him like a great bird. After pushing the little pillow out of the detective’s hands, Nines captured Gavin’s face in strong hands and jerked him forward into a deep, startling kiss. Nines’ kiss was bruising, clumsy, and it bled strong emotions. He gripped Gavin’s face hard with both hands, pulling him forward, clutching him with powerful fingers. The world contracted to a single point; a single thread of awareness of harsh, hot sucking. Nines seemed to want to dive into Gavin’s mouth, twining their tongues together, making soft, deep noises that vibrated into Gavin’s throat. His teeth bit into Gavin’s lips, and struck Gavin’s teeth jarringly.

Gavin’s tongue was melting against Nines’, their mouths a tangle of searing heat. Shudders flowed through his body like hot liquid, turning his muscles to jelly. His knees wobbled and he grabbed at his husband for support, clawing his way up the android’s long back, and finally locking his arms around Nines’ neck.

He knew he was kissing Nines again. They’d kissed before, but something about this kiss was new, and Gavin liked it. It was an odd feeling; to be thrilled and horrified at the same time.

Thrilled, horrified, and suddenly, hopelessly aroused. Nines must’ve realized it…after all, how couldn’t he help but notice, given how their bodies were so close, almost touching…

Nines arched his long body against Gavin’s, and the shorter man felt something unmistakably hard rub against his stomach. He gasped, pulling the air into his own lungs in a burst of suction. Nines abruptly jerked away, panting.

Smirking in haughty pride over his own actions, he leaned over and kissed Gavin’s cheeks softly before he rolled over and got off the bed. “We’ll run late if we linger here and lounge about…” he smirked as he inched over the bed while Gavin tried not looking at his arousal that was poking and rubbing practically over Gavin’s own abdomen. It made the detective shiver with lust, but before he could grab Nines, the android hopped off the bed and began walking towards the bathroom down the hall.

Gavin gaped at him, “What the—”

Nines poked his head back into the room. “Surprised I walk around nude, my husband?” he purred while shaking his head at Gavin, “you’re too much.”

Gavin kicked the sheets off himself, and he joined Nines in the bathroom. While Nines got inside the large, spacious standing shower, Gavin hurriedly brushed his teeth. The steam from the shower soon rose around the room and billowed everywhere, and it soothed Gavin’s muscles and bones. He washed his face, next, but the moment he walked by the shower stall door, Nines slid it open, and his wet hand draped itself around Gavin’s waist. Before Gavin could comprehend what was going on, Nines had yanked him to his side, and he dragged the surprised man into the shower with himself.

Warm water sprayed over Gavin’s body gently, and he let out a happy sigh before he was gently pushed against the shower walls. Nines’ mouth covered Gavin’s, swallowing any protests before they were voiced at all. Gavin relaxed into the kiss, thinking he could definitely get used to this. The warmth serenaded them both, and Nines littered Gavin’s neck and chest with soft kisses.

The shower water rained down upon them, and as Gavin closed his eyes and got lost in the feelings Nines was giving him, he felt Nines gently rubbing his hair. He opened his eyes, and he noticed Nines was shampooing his hair and washing it for him. He snickered, and then grabbed the shampoo bottle as well, getting ready to do the same thing for his husband.

“Can you bend your neck down a little for me?” Gavin stood up on his toes, and he washed Nines’ wet hair as best as he could while he whistled a happy little tune. Nines stared at him, completely in awe and mesmerized. In fact, he hadn’t even moved an inch or blinked since Gavin shampooed his hair and washed his face gently.

“You’re lucky you don’t have to shave,” Gavin joked, and once all the suds from the shampoo had washed off Nines’ skull, Gavin kissed the tip of his nose.

Nines smirked at him, and gently massaged his shoulders and back. Gavin closed his eyes and leaned his head on Nines’ sternum, simply enjoying the massages. “Mmm,” he cooed and purred, “a little lower…”

Nines obeyed, sneaking his hands down to Gavin’s spine, moving up and down as he massaged the tender bones and flesh there from side to side and then up and down again.

“Lower…”

His husband’s hands were now at the swell of his ass, and Gavin licked one of Nines’ nipples. He groaned softly, “Lower…”

Nines suddenly pulled away, and he slid a finger beneath Gavin’s chin as he snickered playfully. His fingers on his opposite hand pinched, and then suddenly swatted Gavin’s ass. Gavin leapt up, and he dug his fingers into Nines’ chest as he growled.

“Heyyyy!!!”

“Don’t ‘hey’ me,” Nines chuckled, and he pressed a kiss onto Gavin’s cheeks softly before he pushed down on his shoulders.

Gavin eyed him playfully. “What do you want, babe?”

Nines grabbed him and pulled him close for a moment, and then whispered seductively and hotly into his ear, “How about a quick, pleasurable exchange? It’ll _really_ help me with work, today…”

Nipping his chin, Gavin snickered back, “Soooo is this your way of asking for a quick b.j. before work?”

“Hmmm,” Nines licked his lower lip, and it made Gavin’s toes curl more than the warm water around them. “Perhaps…” he pushed a little harder on Gavin’s shoulder, a silent urge for him to get on with it before they wasted anymore time.

Gavin got down on his knees, and he massaged Nines’ thighs tenderly before he nuzzled his cock lovingly. This earned him a snicker from Nines. “Are you trying to please me, or my sexual organ?”

Gavin sputtered out a laugh, “I’ll never get over the way you talk sometimes, babe…”

Nines leaned his back against the wall and slightly spread his legs apart so he made enough room for Gavin. Having a little more confidence this morning in comparison to last night, Gavin leaned forward, and he teasingly licked a quick swipe from the tip to the middle of the hard shaft. He watched it harden impossibly more, and he gasped as Nines gently ran a hand through his wet hair.

Encouraged greatly by this, Gavin wrapped his lips around the tip, slowly sucking at first, but then decided to ‘surprise’ Nines by going an extra mile. Bracing himself, he swallowed as much of his husband’s thick, long cock as he could, but he made sure to stop before he gagged himself. He hoped this would please Nines, and evidently it did; the android leaned his head back and let out a deep sigh before whispering Gavin’s name a few times. Gavin never got tired of hearing it, so he began using his tongue to massage and gather the tasteless liquid already forming at the slit of his husband’s cock.

Nines was beyond wet, and it helped him slide in and out of Gavin’s mouth as he slowly moved his hips. He kept a close eye on Gavin the entire time, checking if the other man was alright with his hips gently pounding against his mouth and nose. Gavin didn’t seem to mind, and he sucked deeply as he could while Nines ran his fingers over his neck and shoulders.

Nines still had a long way to go before he came, but he still yanked Gavin up on his feet and spun him to face the shower wall in an instant. It appeared as though Nines was interested in studying and observing Gavin’s body, and though it made the shorter man’s cheeks turn pink, he allowed it. As self-conscious as Gavin was about his body at times, it if pleased his husband, he was willing to allow it.

And did it ever please Nines. He worshipped just viewing Gavin’s body for some time, and while Gavin was distracted by the android’s long fingers gently grazing and plucking his hardened nipples, Nines bent down behind Gavin. Nudging his legs apart, Nines slid a hand over Gavin’s waist, and he gently massaged his pink globes of flesh. Gavin was out of his wits in pleasure, and he couldn’t help a small cry of surprise from escaping him when he felt a puff of warm air over the center of his behind.

Was Nines going to…?

Yes, yes he was, and he had.

Leaning forward, Nines breathed along the entrance to Gavin’s body, causing the other male to seize up in anticipation. Eyes closed, breathing ragged and quick, Gavin panted steam against the shower tiles as Nines spread his cheeks apart gently. It wasn’t too long before that burst of warm air was an inch away from that greedy part of him, and when Gavin involuntarily arched against it, he was met with the warm pad of Nines’ flat tongue.

“NINES!!” he cried out in shock and surprise, and when he reared back, Nines was able to connect directly with him.

His pink tongue pierced through Gavin, and it was so very lewd that it drove Gavin completely insane with want and desire. His legs and knees were shaking and trembling, and he really had to make an effort not to collapse in a heap as Nines tenderly licked him through and through. His tongue swept down over his balls and sack, and Gavin clenched his eyes and teeth together so hard that it hurt. Nothing had ever felt this amazing, and he didn’t know how to get the passionate noises to stop spilling from himself. He was mortified, but Nines didn’t seem to mind as he lapped at him quickly.

Unsure of how much he could take, Gavin nearly bashed his forehead against the shower tiles when Nines pinched and tugged at his nipples while also circling his rim teasingly. If Nines didn’t stop now, it would all end too soon, and Gavin knew he was going to be even more embarrassed. He had no room to go anywhere, and his treacherous body simply was enjoying giving in to Nines’ tongue as it skillfully plundered deeply inside him.

Feeling the water raining down beautifully on his fevered flesh, Gavin was in another world as Nines hungrily and greedily tortured him with his slow, long licks. His body convulsed and quivered around the intruding member that was Nines’ tongue, and Gavin felt his hips moving against his husband’s strong arm around his waist. If only that hand would travel down lower!!

Moments of Gavin’s screams stretched on as they hit the walls and ceiling, when suddenly, Nines chose to stop, though Gavin was grateful.

Still holding the shorter man down so his chest was pressed against the shower wall, Nines didn’t change their positions again while he got to his feet. He now stood behind Gavin as he reached back for some unscented body soap.

Panicking, Gavin tried looking around over his shoulder, but Nines pushed his legs apart, and was already grabbing at his cheeks.

Heart racing a mile a minute, Gavin croaked out weakly, “No! I’m not ready for that yet, Nines!!”

A kiss was delivered to the middle of his back, and then Gavin felt a gentle touch right between his ass cheeks. “Shh,” Nines crooned softly, “I don’t want to do that right now either, Gavin, so please trust me, and be patient with me.”

Gavin relaxed a little, but he still wondered what exactly Nines wanted to do. It soon became evident and clear when Nines poured the soap onto one finger, and he very slowly and gently circled the opening to Gavin’s body. He circled clockwise for a bit, and then turned to counterclockwise motions, and every touch made Gavin cry out for more. Soon, he was a desperate, sopping mess, and he arched back and mewled pleasurably into the touches.

But Nines never went too far; he only circled Gavin’s orifice and gently massaged and rubbed his cheeks with his free hand. It was getting to be too much for Gavin, and he twisted around a little, grabbing Nines’ hand in his own as he pulled his husband a little closer to himself. He could feel Nines’ hard nipples against his back and shoulders, and it lit a fire deep within himself he didn’t know he had up until this point. Gavin only knew he needed more…

It was his turn to guide Nines, and he pushed his hand down over his own needy cock, moaning unintelligibly as Nines snickered. “I know what you want and what you need, Gavin,” he assured, leaning over his shoulder and nipping the top of his ear. Gavin moved back against Nines, unable to control the sounds escaping his mouth and throat, but Nines held onto him firmly, and his hand soon came to fall over Gavin’s aroused cock.

In a few tender motions, Nines gently began sliding his wet hand up and down the length, and then when Gavin growled at him, he changed his motions to quick, jerky, and slightly rough movements. While fisting his erection, Nines also was dutiful to continue making his wet, slippery fingers roll and skate around Gavin’s entrance.

It soon was all too much for the shorter man to take. He was being overwhelmed by pleasure between his legs, behind himself, and over his ear as Nines bit and sucked his earlobe, and he soon came all over his husband’s hand in a shaky, sloppy mess as he screamed and moaned out for his husband. Nines grinned, but didn’t stop stroking Gavin until every drop was spent, and then he very gently grabbed his balls and played with them while massaging the outer rim of Gavin’s entrance.

Gavin turned around and grabbed onto his hands, holding them in his own as they looped and intertwined their fingers. They stared at each other for many long minutes, but then Nines leaned in, making the first move. His lips closed over Gavin’s, the centers perfectly aligned, but Nines was giving Gavin a very chaste kiss. It differed in comparison to the wild kisses with lots of heat, passion, and tongue they’d shared earlier, but this was gentle, calm, mild, and almost loving…

It made Gavin’s heart beat crazily, but Nines gently broke away from the kiss as he snickered and held Gavin to his chest for some time while the shorter male caught his breath. His cheeks and skin were still heated and pink, but he calmed down significantly while Nines washed them both off, and then turned off the water. This drew a sad sigh out of Gavin, but he knew they couldn’t stay in the shower all day, regardless of however much he wanted it.

As they dried themselves off and dressed, Gavin helped Nines with adjusting his long, white tie over a black dress shirt, and Nines smiled at him. “I could get used to this,” he announced while Gavin tied the small knot and clipped the tie on the dress shirt.

“I know you could,” Gavin whispered back, leaning in to kiss his husband’s neck, and then Nines took a few steps back, not allowing either of them to take it much further.

Gavin frowned at him, but Nines rubbed his cheek with a hand. “Come on,” he whispered, “we have a big day today.”

“So you mentioned,” Gavin noted, and now that the lust and raw sexual desire had worn off for the moment, he wondered what Nines had meant earlier.

Nines tilted his head at him. “Look at you,” he broke out into a wide grin, “your mind is spinning as you wonder what we have to do today…” he was able to sneak a hand down to gently touch the swell of Gavin’s ass.

Gavin smirked, but smacked him playfully in the chest. “I’m serious, Nines!” he cried out a bit desperately, “what’s so special about today??”

Nines wrapped a long arm around Gavin’s waist, and he tugged his husband to his side. His eyes glowed with an edge of playfulness, and mirth. “Today, Gavin, the rest of my narcotics-enforcement unit and emergency task force team gets to meet my lovely husband for the first ever…”

Before Gavin could protest, Nines grabbed a comb, hair spray, and gel. “Now,” he grinned charmingly, “would you be a dear and help me fix my hair in that wonderfully seductive manner the night your parents visited us?”

Gavin rolled his eyes. “Can’t you do it yourself, Nines?!”

A playful grin was his answer. “Oh, I can,” Nines purred, shaking the items before Gavin, as if toying with him, “but I much prefer your hands all over me, darling…”

“Fine, fine,” Gavin exhaled, “anything to get your butt movin’ so we won’t be late to meet your boys.”

“They’ll like you, Gavin, trust me,” Nines moved to bend his head, providing Gavin with the best opportunity and way to fix his hair up.

Although his tone was sincere and warm, Gavin couldn’t help but feel nervous as he thought about meeting Nines’ team for the first time since he’d joined the narcotics unit.

He could only hope their first impression of him would be a good one….

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Nines led the way to a medium-sized meeting room, and Gavin soon found that the narcotics-enforcement unit and task force team for Slo-Freeze had been waiting for them. The team consisted of five men and two women Gavin had never seen before. They were all wearing ‘DPD Narcotics’ on the back of their dark, thick vests, and they had backpacks spread along on the floor of the room as they nodded up at Nines and greeted him.

One of the men happened to be a man of Oriental descent. He was the first to walk up to Nines, and he held a little tablet in his hands as he bowed his head before Nines. “Good morning, sir,” he calmly spoke, “we’ve just noted that there’s a huge amount of suspicious activity just North of the loading docks around ‘ _Horseshoe Housing and Furniture’_ , and we believe it is the import of Slo-Freeze.”

Nines nodded at him, hands clasped behind his back as he regarded the man seriously. “We’ll discuss it more in a moment, Justin…” He then turned to the rest of the team members, and Gavin looked at them all shyly.

“Everyone,” Nines barked out, “this is Detective Gavin Reed; he’s my newest recruit. Detective,” he turned to Gavin, then, first gently tapping on the Asian man’s arm, “this is Justin Hsu, he’s our main researcher and tracker; he obtained most of his training and education in China.”

Justin nodded at Gavin, and then Nines introduced the two women, first. They were both short and quite burly, though in athletic shape, and Gavin could tell by how thick their necks were, even though they were wearing vests and a lot of body armor. Either way, he figured these women weren’t easily pushed around and forces to be reckoned with.

The woman on the left had long, blonde hair tied back into a ponytail. “This is Maria,” Nines introduced her quickly, and she winked at Gavin while blowing pink bubblegum. Gavin smiled at her in a warm greeting, and he noticed the small flag of Norway pinned on Maria’s left lapel.

The woman beside Maria had frizzy brown hair, and it was cut and styled a lot shorter than Maria’s, and happened to be a little curly. “This is Gwen,” Nines stated, “she and Maria started on the team with their talent and knack for training the narcotics and cadaver canines.”

Four more men were left to introduce, and two of them were African American, and Nines stated that they were cousins. One of them was taller than the other, but otherwise, they looked like identical twins.

“This is Marshall,” Nines pointed at the shorter one, “and this is his cousin Marlon,” he pointed at the taller one next. “Although they were born and raised right here in the heart of Detroit, they work closely with the communication team to track down the different ethnic groups involved in gang activity so it’s easier for us to determine where and how the drugs are being exported to.”

Finally, Nines moved to the final two men on the team, and one of them was even shorter than Gavin himself, and couldn’t have been over five feet and six inches maximum. He had very shortly buzzed down hair, practically kissing his skull, and it had been bleached platinum blonde. He had plenty of earrings in each ear, and he had piercings in his eyebrows with a sharp shade of friendly, icy-green eyes.

“This is J.D.,” Nines stated, “flown in all the way from Liverpool, England, he’s a weapons and firearms expert; has all the intel on the newest kinds of weapons gangs get their hands on per minute.”

J.D. grinned at Gavin, “Hola newbie!” J.D. did indeed have a hint of a British accent, though he seemed to be trying to hide it as he winked playfully at Gavin.

When they moved to the final member of the team, Gavin knew there was going to be a problem instantly. This man was still sitting down, and his gear and armor was a lot different than the other team members’. He was wearing S.W.A.T. armor, and long, thick black boots. He wore sunglasses even though they were currently indoors, and had his head completely shaved, save for a small strip of vertical patch of hair running down along the back of his skull just sitting right above the optical cranial bone. He had a small, dark brown goatee, and his skin was rather pale. For a moment, Gavin wondered if he was even human. He didn’t move; not even when Nines stood before him and peered down at him.

But regardless of his appearance, Gavin knew this man was different, simply from his attitude, body posture, body language, and the aura he gave off entirely. From one glance at him, Gavin concluded and gathered that this man held no respect, had a huge sense of self-entitlement, and his ego overpowered and dominated anything else. It was all evident in the fact that the male glared mutinously and didn’t say anything to anyone.

Nines held down a hand towards the man, “And this is Butch…” he sighed, as if not wanting to talk about the man at all, “…he’s Captain Allen’s right-hand man and directly from the S.W.A.T. team, but as per both Captain Allen’s and Captain Fowler’s instructions, he’s here to observe, report, and provide feedback for improvements in the foreseeable future.”

Gavin didn’t like this at all. He stared blankly down at Butch until he grew uncomfortable. Butch’s sunglasses made it so that Gavin had no idea whether he was even staring back at him or not, and he turned to Nines with a pained expression on his face.

Nines caught onto it, and he growled down at Butch, “Usually when your superior is talking to you, Butch, it’s in good form to respond.”

Ever-so-slowly then, Butch got up to his full height. He was almost as tall as Nines, but not quite. Still, he gave Gavin a huge fright, and he didn’t like standing in front of Butch. He held his ground, however, but it didn’t matter much to Butch. Someone with his attitude likely thought he was above the world, and he didn’t want to answer to anyone.

Butch cracked his knuckles, even though he was wearing S.W.A.T. gloves, and he then rolled his neck from side-to-side, cracking the tension there while everyone stood about silently. When he was ready to talk, he smiled a sharp, toothy white smile that looked like a shark about to bite through a boat.

“I don’t really see my superior before me, Nines,” his voice was thick, gravelly, and rough, much like his exterior and personality. “I answer to Captain Allen, and I don’t see that man here…”

Nines’ upper lip curled back in a deadly snarl. Gavin was afraid of it, but apparently, Butch couldn’t care less. He stuck out his chest as he removed his sunglasses, and Gavin was met with the palest blue eyes he’d ever seen. Butch’s eyes were a lot more white-blue than Elijah Kamski’s, and he seemed to already have his mind made up about Gavin as he sneered cruelly at him.

“This is Gavin Reed,” Nines repeated, though his tone screamed out that he was running out of patience for Butch.

Butch rubbed his gloved fingers along his goatee. “ _Gayvin_ Reed?”

Nines nearly lost it. He grabbed at Butch’s vest collar, and he yanked him square up until he was directly facing him. “Listen here, Butch!” Nines screamed, while Gavin and Justin tried grabbing onto his arms and prying him away from Butch. It was no use, though; the determined, angry android wasn’t a force to be reckoned with.

Shaking Butch violently, Nines snapped at him angrily, “You _will_ show nothing but respect towards _every_ member of this team, or I will have a word or two with Captain Allen about your future ‘career’ on the S.W.A.T. force!”

That threat seemed to have worked, at least for now. Butch merely waited until Nines released his hold on him, and then he brushed himself off as he sniffed, wiped his nose with the back of his gloved hand, and then he used that very same hand to reach out for Gavin in a handshake. The shorter detective glared at it.

“Nice to meet you, Gavin,” Butch snickered, and then withdrew his hand when Gavin refused to take it.

Nines was still on the warpath, but he collected himself when he felt Gavin holding on to his elbow. He held his head up high as he addressed the rest of his team.

“Listen very carefully, because I loathe repeating myself!” he yelled at them all with command and urgency in his voice. “We only have one chance at this, and I want to get it right the first time! You all _will_ obey me, even if you think otherwise! Don’t question me, don’t talk back,” his eyes moved over Butch, then, “and don’t give me any damn attitude.”

The team members seemed slightly fearful of Nines, and they held a great amount of respect for him as they all listened carefully in sheer silence. As Gavin looked at each and every one of them dressed in their heavy, thick, dark gear and clothes, his brain finally screamed at him what these people did for a living, and who they all were…

Mercenaries.

Putting it bluntly, they were all mercenaries, regardless of whether they wore ‘DPD’ marked gear or not, and Nines was organizing and leading them.

This frightened and terrified Gavin to no end, but he supposed that these were honestly ‘the best’ of the best when it came to a job such as ruthlessly tracking and hunting down a wild, insane gang such as Ouroboros. He held faith in the team so that they’d be able to finally put an end to all the misery and suffering innocent lives befell at the cruel hands of the infamous, hellish gang once and for all.

Nines moved along until he was before the rest of the team, and they stood to their feet as they grabbed their backpacks and weapons.

“We’re moving out, now, as there is suspected drug activity and a push to get it out on the streets,” he explained quickly while the team members circled him. “If we’re lucky, we can hopefully bust a Slo-Freeze production lab, but I need everyone to remain on their toes and on the alert, are we clear??”

“YES SIR!!!!!” they all screamed out together simultaneously, except for Butch. He displayed his attitude and contempt by rolling his eyes, but he silently put on his sunglasses and stood back.

Nines nodded at them. “Good! Any questions?”

No one dared to speak up, and while that seemed clear enough, Gavin’s mind was in shambles, and his heart was a mess. So many things screamed out to him and waved around like red flags, but before he could say anything, Nines began leading them all out of the building and over to the large S.W.A.T. truck.

He had no choice but to follow, putting all his faith and trust in his husband.

* * *

 

Look at what a reader by the name of Sara_Reading did for us!!!!! 🙏😨😱😰🌸🌸🌸🎀

They managed to draw Dom and Kelly as well, and I believe it's from chapter 32- Resonance of a Fantasy!!! I just LOVE her attention to my details, and she made it all her own in such a beautiful way!!!

Please check out her deviant art page if you want, guys, she is one of the most talented people I have seen yet when it comes to fine art!!!

Link to the work: <https://sta.sh/019c8goe47b3>  
Her username on DA is Sayuri-Winter

Thank you once again, dear!! I love it so much! 🌹🌹💖💞💞

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Butch is a dick. Hands down, a big dick -_-
> 
> Anyway, just some useless info on the members of the team, and I'm providing them here IF people wish to draw or write about any of these characters!!  
> J.D. British background but he only has a very slight hint of a British accent sometimes and it tends to come out when he's pissed lel  
> Maria is from Norway  
> Gwen's partly Aboriginal but mostly North American, specifically from Los Angeles  
> Justin - from China  
> Marlon and Marshall from Detroit and were born there as mentioned in the fic  
> Butch- half Irish, half Welsh descent


	39. Bad Blood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I am soooo glad to be back and in safer hands. I thankfully haven't received any email from the person who was trying to threaten me and scare me, and I am hoping I will never hear from them again. Perhaps me telling them I went to the authorities made them get the hint, and I feel comfortable enough to post this chapter early.
> 
> I also would like to sincerely thank ANYONE who supported me, gave me a kind word or two, reached out to ask me if I was okay, or held any good wish or thought in their mind about me. Thank you guys SO very much for being so wonderfully encouraging and supportive. I don't think I would've posted earlier if it weren't for you guys.  
> Please know you all hold a special place dearly in my heart.
> 
> Thank you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *WARNING! Some homophobic language!!!!!!!*
> 
> Music credits here:  
> The song J.D. was singing is 'Angel of the Morning' Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmxICK-4AG4
> 
> Second song is 'My Brother'  
> *I personally think Butch's song was cooler though, and it's from Berserk* I feel like it goes better with this chapter, and I have found an extended version of it!  
> Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tr6BMiHMPtI

Butch was listening to heavy metal and rock music the entire trip towards the loading docks located behind a giant furniture and house-part assembly warehouse. While the warehouse was still in use for the company that owned it, a lot of people had reported that they suspected that the owner himself had ties with Ouroboros, and was merely using the warehouse as a front of their drug drop-off and creation business.

Naturally, the team had to go in and investigate it, and when there had been reports of suspected violence as well, it was a great cause for concern.

Gavin sat beside Justin Hsu and the African American cousins Marlon and Marshall. Directly across from them sat Maria, Gwen, and J.D. Nines and Butch sat at the far corner of the truck, glaring away at each other. Butch’s music overpowered everything, even though he was wearing headphones.

The silence grew to be too much for the eccentric, excited J.D., and he scratched his head as he nodded at Gavin. “First time on a drug bust?” he asked in a slightly high-pitched tone of voice.

The vehicle bounced and dragged along potholes and gravel as the rest of the team members stared at Gavin, awaiting his response.

Gavin cleared his throat, “Yeah, I’m actually new to all of this,” he motioned randomly around the truck.

This made Maria and Gwen smirk at him, though they weren’t being cruel. Maria sat up as she toyed with her blonde hair in her ponytail. “It’s okay to be a bit nervous; just don’t let the enemy know you’re nervous!”

Gavin nodded at her, “Appreciate it!”

J.D. elbowed Marlon. “Just how many people do you think Ouroboros have bought?”

The dark-eyed man shrugged. “Who knows, but I’m wondering what the cost of loyalty is these days!”

The wind blew strongly around the vehicle as it moved along faster towards the large warehouse, but Gavin couldn’t see much of anything through the heavily tinted windows. He chewed on his lower lip as he felt his way along his bullet-proof vest, and then when he looked up, he saw Nines giving him a reassuring look of comfort. It made him smile back, but then Butch leaned in the way, effectively blocking Nines’ face from Gavin’s sight. He merely leered at Gavin coldly.

As Gavin looked away, Gwen and Maria whispered among each other. “Whoever the leader of this stupid gang is, they sure know what they’re doing!”

Nines tilted his head at Gwen. “What do you mean, Gwen?”

The burly young woman’s face went red, suddenly. “Sir, this individual is very clever, in my opinion; they’ve bought every judge in the city, practically, and based on my research, taking them to trial is going to be quite difficult.”

Nines huffed at the idea of that posing as a challenge. “That may be so,” he looked around at each team member evenly, “but remember this; you are _all_ defenders and protectors of the public, and they have all trusted you with their lives. I don’t care what money says, I don’t care what conglomerate they own or have; it’s time to do the right thing.”

The team cheered, and Nines hushed them when the vehicle came to a slow halt. As Gavin squinted out the window, Nines announced that they had arrived.

Apparently, they’d parked behind the warehouse, and seemed as if their vehicle was the only one here. It was all empty, quiet, and thankfully-from what Gavin could tell by observing their surroundings-the CCTV cameras appeared to have either been purposefully shut off, or otherwise too old to operate.

The back doors of the vehicle opened, and Gavin was faced with a gloomy, windy atmosphere. The pier and the waters beyond it stood openly before his eyes, and the wind caused little ripples along the smooth surface of the dark waters. It did nothing for Gavin’s nerves, and he trembled as he held onto the gun he’d been given. Would he really need it?? He hated shooting, even when he’d been a rookie, younger cop back in the day. He avoided it whenever he could, and he didn’t want to admit to any of these badass and tough looking men and women that simply the sound of a gun firing off freaked him out.

“Listen up carefully,” Nines cried out as the team members circled him, “I’m going to split you into teams, and I will appoint the leader of each team!”

Maria popped her bubblegum loudly, and Nines glared at her for a split second before he addressed them all again. “Okay, J.D., you will go with Butch, Marshall, and Gavin!”

J.D. nodded happily, but Marshall looked as worried as Gavin did. Before they could say anything further, Nines cried out, “Justin, Marlon, Gwen, Maria, you are all paired with me!” They all nodded, and Nines told them to check if their weapons and gear were assembled and ready to go. As they all did their checks, Gavin noticed J.D. dancing over to the edge of the pier peeking out into the large, deep river. Apparently, he was lost in his thoughts and musings, and he wandered around as he threw a few little rocks and stones into the murky waters beneath himself.

He started humming, and then threw his head back as he sang out, “Just call me angel of the morning, angel! Just touch my cheek before you leave me, baby!” His singing was so bad and off-tune, that everyone visibly winced and turned away upon hearing it.

Nines snapped at him, “J.D.! Knock it off!”

Butch shook his head in disapproval as he held his firearm with great pride in his hands, “Fuckers will hear us for sure, now.”

J.D. kept going, however, not paying attention at all to anyone as he danced about with his assault rifle in his hands. “Just call me angel of the morning, angel! Then slowly turn away from me, maybe the sun’s light will be dim, and it won’t matter anyhow—”

Nines stormed over to him and whipped him around by hooking a hand onto his shoulder. He glared down into his eyes viciously. “You fool!” he cried out, “keep your heinous voice down!”

J.D. gaped at him, and he yanked out his earbuds. “I’m sorry, sir! This song’s catchy—”

Nines slapped a hand over his mouth to silence him at the same time loud doors banged open on the other side of the large warehouse.

Nines gasped softly, “Get down!”

They all crashed down low, their dark gear and uniforms helping them hide behind crates, boxes, and other barrels that littered the back of the warehouse. Voices soon rang out, and footsteps ran around, but Gavin was unable to see what was going on. Nines soon crawled over to him, and he whispered hurriedly, “Gavin, you will lead your team, and I will lead mine! Just follow me, and ensure we handle these guards quietly before more of them come swarming out!”

Nodding, Gavin grabbed J.D.’s collar, and he pulled him close to Marshall as they planned a little ‘route’ of sorts. They needed to get to the other side of the warehouse, where they could easily slip in through the windows and doors, but they had to get there without making much noise. This was going to be a challenge, as shortly, two Ouroboros security guards began walking around outside. They held knives, rifles, shotguns, and had explosives and grenades tied to a belt around their waist.

Butch snorted as he crept up beside Gavin, and they were stopped before a large, rectangular wooden crate. “They got the whole works,” Butch pointed out while he pushed his sunglasses up with one finger. “What makes you think we can take ‘em?”

Gavin held out his knife, and the blade shined in the evening sun. “This will help me…” he then crept up behind Nines’ team, and he stayed in the shadows and cover the barrels and boxes provided. Marshall and J.D. followed him closely, and Gavin tapped two fingers above his eyes, and then pointed them at the backs of the security guards as they walked around like beasts trying to sniff out their prey. The guards were thorough in their search, going about looking through garbage dumpsters and bins lined up along the right-hand side of the back of the building. They communicated softly back and forth with each other when they were unable to find anything suspect, and they soon enough gave up on their hunt.

That didn’t mean they were out in the clear, yet, and Gavin took in small, quiet breaths as he listened to the sounds of their boots roughly gliding along the dirt and gravel of the ground.

“Stay sharp,” Gavin whispered, and J.D. gave him two-thumbs up, before he inched by a small box beside Gavin’s, and they peered over the edge of it quickly. One of the guards had his back to them finally, and he leaned against Gavin’s crate as he searched his dark pants pockets for a cigarette.

Gavin stared at J.D., and they counted silently.

One.

Two.

Three.

At once, J.D. wrapped a gloved hand around the guard’s mouth, and Gavin sprang up, bashing him over the back of the head with the handle of the knife. The man was knocked out cold, and J.D. cheered as he danced and high-fived Marshall. At once, his radio-communication device hissed on, and a voice growled at him. “I said take these men out _quietly,_ J.D.; that’s the other end of loud!!”

Yelping, J.D. grabbed his radio, and he whispered into it as his eyes darted from side-to-side wildly and erratically. “B-boss? Is that you?”

“No, it’s Abraham Lincoln!” Nines snapped, “stop wasting time, you inept monkey!”

Not requiring more in the way of encouragement, Marshall nodded at J.D., and when J.D. and Marshall dragged the unconscious guard back over the boxes and crates and laid him out flatly on the ground, Butch raised his leg, aiming to kick down on the unconscious man’s face.

Before he could bring his boot down over the man’s face, Gavin placed a hand down on his knee and stopped him. Butch looked up at him, his cold eyes peering up, barely visible over the rim of the sunglasses.

“Leave him!” Gavin whispered, and then he shoved Butch down as they crept away forward behind Nines’ team. Soon, they all got pretty far, and Gwen swiftly kicked the last guard in the back of the shins, knocking him down while Nines quickly kicked him in the head and knocked him out. They quickly hid the bodies as turned left, pressing their backs against the cold bricks of the building as they neared the front. Unfortunately, at least ten guards stood around the front doors, and only one old, blue-painted chipped door was the way inside the back of the warehouse. A very large, muscly guard stood posted before it, and Nines held out his hand as he stopped his team from advancing.

They were at least a good distance away and hidden between other crates, carts, barrels, and stacks of heavy equipment found from old mines. It was like an obstacle course they had to carefully map out and run around, but Gavin was ready as Nines spoke to them all quickly.

“Gavin’s team will take the horde on the right!” he looked at Gavin, “I scanned the warehouse, and there’s another door on the right behind all these guards, so my team will focus on taking these guys out and causing a distraction. When we do, your team heads in, and you don’t waste any time!!”

Gavin nodded in confirmation, holding his weapons close to himself. A loud clattering sound hit their ears, suddenly, and half of the team members gasped in fright. J.D. had been the source of the noise; he’d dropped his weapons down by his feet while shaking and trembling in fear.

Rolling his eyes at the pathetic display, Nines pulled the smaller man to his feet. “J.D.!” he snapped irritably, “what happened to your courage and warrior spirit, you clown?!?”

Rocking and swaying on his feet, J.D. whimpered as he collected his weapons back into his arms, but didn’t say much else. As Nines pushed J.D. over towards Gavin, he offered his husband a curt nod while his face scrunched up in worry. Having no other choice, Nines departed from him. “Stay sharp!”

Boldly, Gavin spun around and faced his team members. “You heard Nines,” he whispered quickly, “let’s go.”

Everyone except Butch got to action, though the S.W.A.T. team member held a grin on his face as they crept and snuck their way from crate-to-crate, box-to-box. They were hidden away silently as smoke and foul smells filled the air, and Gavin had to guess that it was Slo-Freeze being brewed. As they drew closer and closer to the right-hand side of the building towards the door Nines had located for them, the odors grew more potent and deadly. It matched the same disgusting, murky smell and state that Nines had experimented and toyed with back in the secret room beneath their home, and Gavin began to appreciate how wise Nines had been to test it beforehand.

Gavin heard cries of pain, and he knew that Nines’ team had already started attacking the Ouroboros guards. They had to hurry; they didn’t have time to go in through the door. Grabbing the back of J.D.’s and Marshall’s vests, he pointed at large, rectangular windows almost the same height as J.D. himself.

“That’s our way in,” he cried out, “you guys go on ahead! I’m going to see if Nines is okay!!”

They leapt away, obeying him as they kept low to the ground. Gavin hoped they would be okay, but as he turned around to start running back to help Nines, a fist slammed into his face, and he was sent tumbling down to the ground roughly. Even the weapon Gavin had previously been holding onto went sailing across the ground, only to be lost somewhere beneath a small pile of old boxes and bags.

Blood spurted forth, and Gavin held a hand up to his torn lip. Glaring up, he saw the orange-yellow rays of the evening sun beaming down over Butch’s bald head. He took off his sunglasses, tucking them into one of the pockets of his S.W.A.T. vest, and he looked down in silence at Gavin for a few moments.

Gavin tried getting up, but Butch kicked him in the ribs.

“BUTCH!” he coughed out in pain as his eyes welled up with tears, “what the fuck?!”

Gunfire was soon heard echoing from the other side of the warehouse and within it, and thundering footsteps and screams in different languages assaulted Gavin’s ears. They had no time for whatever it was Butch wanted to do! Nines needed backup, and Gavin was growing concerned when he heard Gwen and Maria yelling loudly.

“This isn’t funny, Butch!” he gasped out as he spat blood down on the pavement, “what’re you—”

Butch grabbed his phone, and he suddenly put some of the music he’d been listening to on. Gavin wondered what was going on when the sound of a loud, electric guitar jammed on, and it wasn’t too long before he saw Butch cracking his neck and knuckles as he stared at Gavin the entire time.

_My brother, come join me,_

_In battle we are stronger_

_When Tudor will falter,_

_Sacrificed to their altar._

The music was loud and operatic over the guitar riff, and Gavin soon realized why Butch had turned on the music…he didn’t want anyone to hear what he was going to do to him.

Cowering down, Gavin tried backing away, but Butch stepped on his left foot, though he wasn’t trying to break any bones; he was just trying to keep Gavin in place as he leaned his head and neck down and stared at him coldly and mercilessly.

“You know,” he began, his voice dropping an octave lower as he slowly bent down, “the other kids on our team may want to turn a blind eye to you, but I won’t…” his eyes studied Gavin’s body a little too much for comfort, “I know you’re with Nines,” he whispered, and then he held out a hand over Gavin’s face, almost touching him, but Gavin leaned away from him and trembled in anger and fear.

Butch chuckled, and it sounded much like a monster growling than a man laughing. “The only question is…” his eyes were cold, emotionless, and devoid of any humanity or feeling.

“…have you let Nines fuck you, yet?”

_One hundred years of wait is over,_

_Now we claim what is rightful to us._

_My brother, come join me,_

_In battle we are stronger!_

The music was growing even louder, and it matched the intensity at which his heart was slamming into his chest while his brain and ears allowed Butch’s crude words to sink in slowly.

“You pig!” Gavin tried swinging at him, but missed when Butch merely ducked backwards a little. He chuckled again, clearly enjoying watching Gavin struggle as he slowly crunched down on his ankle. Not wanting to alert anyone else, the detective bit down on his tongue and the insides of his mouth. His body was in searing hot amounts of pain, but he’d rather die than allow Butch that fucking satisfaction and power he wanted to gain over him.

Spitting at him in vitriol and hatred, Gavin growled, “If you think you’re going to be able to get away with this for even two seconds, then you’re sorely mistaken—”

The pressure of Butch’s massive, muscly body size had been brought down over his left arm when the corrupt S.W.A.T. member lifted his leg up and placed it strategically right over Gavin’s elbow. The bone crunched a little, and tears began flowing freely from Gavin’s eyes. “You’re g-going to break my fuckin’ arm, Butch!!”

“That’s the idea, faggot,” Butch snapped at him menacingly, and his eyes sparkled and twinkle with hatred and disgust unlike any Gavin had ever recalled seeing and receiving in his entire life.

 _“So this is what it’s all about?”_ He shook and trembled as his thoughts turned fuzzy. _“He wants to break me and ruin me because I’m gay??? What luck…just my fucking luck to go and be stuck with the blatantly obvious homophobic person on the god damn team!!”_

Butch’s walkie-talkie radio suddenly hissed and buzzed, and Gavin looked down at it while someone obviously tried getting in touch with Butch.

_When Tudor will falter,_

_Sacrificed to their altar._

The music was loud, but the screams and gunshots overpowered it. Butch pressed the ‘answer’ button. “What?”

“Butch!” J.D. screamed and was panting in panic, and Gavin wagered accurately that he was being chased. “Get in here, quick!!” J.D.’s and Marshall’s screams were loud, and soon, a powerful BOOM exploded from within the warehouse and shook the grounds.

_Oh, my brother, with your courage we can conquer,_

_In your sword I put my trust that you will honor,_

“HURRY!!!! WE CAN’T HOLD THEM ALL OFF!!!”

Butch released Gavin’s ankle and arm, and Gavin immediately got to his feet. Wildly, he ran as quickly as he could towards the windows, and as soon as he stood before them, another explosion went off. Gas and smoke blew about in the wind, and Gavin fell to his knees as he coughed and sputtered, practically choking on the strong fumes alone. The glass shattered, but Gavin crawled on his elbows hurriedly, and he climbed inside the building as he slid himself carefully up and over the broken windows.

He didn’t know whether Butch was behind him or not, and he couldn’t turn back to look, even if he’d wanted to. Too much smoke had filled the air, and a large fire had started inside the building. As Gavin fell to the floor, he saw that inside, it was a complete mess.

The warehouse resembled a meth lab, practically; vials, jars, plastic containers, tubes, smoke, papers, and little cauldrons and elements burned brightly on glass countertops, and all of it shattered as Ouroboros members hid behind the counters while engaging in a shoot-out with Marshall and J.D.

The two members of the narcotics team were currently hiding behind a makeshift shield, which consisted of a busted down garbage dumpster lid. It was riddled with bullets, but they used it effectively as they shielded themselves and hid behind it as they reloaded their weapons and fired round after round. The bullets flew through the air, crashing against glass and suitcases full of money, and the bills floated up into the air, raining down colorfully on everyone equally.

As Butch climbed in through the window next and rolled down to hide behind a few barrels, the side doors burst open. The largest, thickest guard flew through the air and crashed down on his back, sliding across the slippery floors which were coated in blood, sweat, Slo-Freeze chemicals, and ash. His head slammed against a counter, and he blacked out as Nines flew in after him.

Gavin caught sight of his husband, and he felt a sense of relief and joy wash over himself.

_“Nines is okay! Thank god!!!!”_

Strangely, as his ears rang from the sounds of the explosion and bullets firing about, he thought he could still hear the lyrics to the song Butch had played earlier.

_I will be the higher ground should you concede it,_

_And my body be your shield if you should need it._

Nines stared at Gavin, and then he screamed at him from the top of his lungs, “GAVIN! HIDE, NOW!!”

Guns turned and aimed for Gavin, almost in slow motion, and Nines bulldozed into him. As soon as his body collided with Gavin’s, they fell to the side and rolled over, crashing into glass containers and jars. Their contents exploded over them, but Gavin was safe. Nines was protecting and shielding his body with his hands, and he looked up when the Ouroboros members stopped shooting for a moment. They wanted to check if they were dead, and they had little time to keep moving.

Dragging the garbage-dumpster shield over to them, J.D., Marshall, and Butch cowered down around them. Maria, Gwen, Marlon, and Justin entered through the door Nines had busted down, and they sprang to action. Gavin was surprised to see that Gwen and Maria could hold their own quite well.

They must’ve been trained in martial arts and special self-defense classes, for they kicked and brutally disarmed the gang members who ran at them with knives. They effectively and efficiently knocked them back, kicking their weapons away from them as Marlon wrestled the bigger guards out of the way whenever Justin had stunlocked them. They truly worked as a team and communicated as one group; the women signaled to Marlon when they needed help overpowering a gang member, and he would race over to them, delivering roundhouse kicks and brutal punches whenever and wherever he could. He was the perfect shield for them, and they all eventually cleared the area around the main doors while Nines and Gavin gaped around at the remainder of the team members.

“Nines—”

A war cry emanated and pierced through the air, suddenly, and as they all stared up in shock, a guard holding long, sharp dual blades measuring at least 26 inches was advancing upon them quickly. From one glance at the blades, Gavin knew it was a possibility that the weapons would pierce directly through their tiny ‘barricade’ J.D. had poorly fashioned. Evidently, the British man thought the same, for he leapt up to his feet bravely and blocked one of the guard’s arms from slashing down upon everyone.

“Oy!” he snapped loudly, a hand firmly holding one of the blades up into the air. His strength matched the guard’s, and even the light-skinned, middle-aged guard himself had paused in awe at the feat of strength J.D. displayed.

“Mate!” J.D. continued with a raised finger, “you remind me a lot of my dad, you know!”

The lull was broken, and the guard roared again as he sliced upwards into the air with the second blade after knocking J.D.’s arm aside. It connected with J.D.’s protective vest, and it dangerously cut right through it.

Nines screamed out in fear, “J.D.!!!”

Peering down at himself, the shorter man cried out in shock. Thankfully, only the vest had been cut through, and J.D.’s skin was still protected and unharmed.

Pressing a hand down between the cut-through portions of his vest, J.D. growled out, “Look at that damage, dad!!!”

Flipping his blades into the air, the guard then turned the handle of one so it was facing J.D., and he bashed him in the chin powerfully using the blade handle.

“DAAAAAAAAAAD!!!!” J.D. screamed out, and he was knocked backwards, landing right on top of Butch.

While the guard was momentarily distracted by focusing on taking J.D. out, Nines reached for his gun, and he brandished it high. Firing off two shots, he landed a perfect aim right for the guard’s chest, and the man dropped in a heavy heap to the floor in seconds.

“We have to find the leader, _now_!” Butch interrupted Gavin when the detective gently tried helping J.D. off Butch. Viciously, he shoved the shorter men away from himself as they were still hidden behind their ‘shield’.

Nines shook his head, “It’s too dangerous, Butch, we have to leave and call for backup!”

“NO!” he argued back, “god damn it! I say we go for it, _now_!”

Gavin snarled at him, resisting the urge to punch his lights out. “I’m leading _you_ , and I say we have to go back!”

He wagged a finger in Gavin’s face, “I’m not a chickenshit sissy like you, and I’m gonna do this!!”

J.D. placed his hands on his head and cried out in panic as he clenched his eyes shut. “He always thinks he is invincible!!”

Butch was already up, and he dove over what was left of the counters as he slid around and maneuvered himself towards the front of the large warehouse. There was a small group of Ouroboros members there not too far away from Butch, and they were circling protectively around someone…

Gavin couldn’t see through all the gunfire and explosions, but he heard Nines screaming as he tried getting up to follow Butch. “BUTCH!!!!!! GOD DAMN IT!!!” When Nines tried leaping after him, both J.D. and Marshall held him down.

“SIR! IT’S TOO DANGEROUS!!”

“BUTCH!!!!”

Gavin tossed his fears and worries into the wind, and he tore after Butch. As long as J.D. and Marshall kept Nines safe, he was going to go through with this. Tearing after the man like fire on the floor spreading wildly and uncontrollably, Gavin sped after him as he dodged the explosions and bullets.

The ground was on fire and some places had large gaping holes in them when chemicals poured in a messy heap and spill. Gavin cleverly ducked and leapt out of the way, but he heard the rest of the team screaming after him and Butch, now.

“GET BACK HERE! GAVIN!!!!!”

He ignored their voices, and eventually, he caught up to Butch. He was hanging onto his gun, raising it carefully as he peered over the edge and side of a group of large, black garbage bags he’d currently been taking refuge behind. He panted furiously, wiping sweat off his bald head as he glared at Gavin.

“The fuck you doin’ here?!”

Gavin snarled, “Savin’ your fuckin’ ass!”

“I don’t need your help, you god damn homo!” Butch got up, and without looking, he let his anger guide him forth. He shot round after round at the remaining gang members, and they fired back just as quickly. Butch was soon sniped in the shoulder, and he screamed as he crashed down to the side.

He still persisted doggedly, however; he crawled through his own blood pooling around himself, and he shot the kneecaps of the last few guards. They crashed down to the floor in pain. Lights exploded and flickered above as the last few rounds of bullets from their guns shot up into the ceiling as they rolled around in pain. Butch crawled over to them, and Gavin followed, trying to provide backup for him whilst trying to also pick him up off the floor, but Butch didn’t allow it. Every time Gavin tried touching him, he would growl and snap at him to fuck off and go away.

The exits soon slammed open and shut, and as Gavin looked up, he saw the backs of two men fleeing. He didn’t get the chance to take a good look at them as the pair scarpered, however; a tall, thin woman with long brown hair started running at him with a knife held in her hands. Her bright green eyes promised murder, and she let out a horrifying scream.

He’d never seen her before, and it was as if she’d materialized out of thin air while she approached him viciously with the knife brandished high in the air. Gavin knew he was frozen to the spot, and he had no time to react, even if danger was evidently in his face.

Gavin moved to the side as she drew her arm back, ready to plunge the knife deeply into his chest, but then she was stopped by a long arm shooting out between her body and Gavin’s. The arm slammed into her chest, and shoved her back hard. She screamed as she fell backwards and landed on a pile of stacked boxes and books. They came crashing down over her head, and the knife was knocked out of her hand.

Nines stepped down on it, and kicked it out of the way and far away from her reach.

Outside, car tires screeched, and Gavin knew that the two men he’d seen had gotten away. He fell to his knees, groaning in anger and frustration, while Butch held onto his injured shoulder and hissed.

Gwen and Maria got down before him, and they pulled out their first aid kits, ready to address the wound. Butch hissed softly at them, but they grabbed him and began attending to the wound while Nines stared down at the unconscious woman.

She was wearing a grey blouse, and it was torn and singed in many areas, and tight black jeans over black flats. She had a scar and blood trickling down her forehead from the impact of her crash, but she was still breathing steadily as her chest rose and fell in a slow rhythm.

As Nines peered around the damage, chaos, and wreckage, he turned back to Gavin, and once he knew his husband was alright, he grabbed Butch roughly without even uttering a single word. His hands and fingers dug into his wound, which was still open, and the other man let out a blood-curdling scream.

“Sir!!!” Maria cried out through labored breaths, “he needs to go to a hospital!”

“QUIET!” Nines roared, and he began dragging Butch outside the warehouse.

Piles and mountains of dead bodies of Ouroboros members lay about, but Nines didn’t care. He dragged Butch through it all, and the rest of the narcotics task-force team followed as they screamed out after him to get him to stop and put Butch down.

Amidst all the screaming, Gavin studied the unconscious woman lying not too far away from his feet. Something horrible tugged and churned in his gut about her, and knowing they had to take her in for questioning, he gently grabbed her hands and cuffed them together as he picked her up and held her in his arms.

It took him a while to carry her out of the warehouse; he didn’t want to see what was going on to cause such painful screaming outside just yet…

No, he didn’t think he would ever be prepared for any of it, on second thought…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ngl Butch, that's what your homophobic, bullying arse gets. But at least J.D.'s fucking hilarious XD
> 
> Who is this mysterious woman, and who were those two guys Gavin saw fleeing?  
> O_o


	40. Perfect Candidate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally, we find out about our mystery woman 😱👀

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Portuguese translations!!!  
> Seus, porcos = You pigs  
> Me deixa ir= Let me go

The paramedics were speedily on the way, but Nines wasn’t able to hold back from punching Butch a few times as hard as he could muster in the face. While the injured S.W.A.T. officer held onto his injured arm, Nines delivered punch after punch, then resorted to grabbing him so he could stand still after nearly being beaten to a bloody pulp, and then he kicked him hard in the ribs.

As the other narcotics enforcement task force team members screamed at Nines to stop, the angry RK900 refused to do so. It was as if he’d literally snapped; no one could break through to him. While he heard their cries of reverent terror and panic, he just couldn’t bring himself to stop or slow down as he assaulted Butch mercilessly. Nines was an unstoppable force, and Gavin just knew he was only going to cease and desist once Butch was dead…

Gavin gently set the unconscious woman he’d been carrying down on the ground as he tore after Nines while the android was swiftly punching Butch again and again. Red blood flew everywhere and splattered on the ground and all over Nines’ dark clothes, but he didn’t care. He kept up with the brutal assault, and the narcotics unit members screamed as they tried to pry him away from Butch.

The shaven-headed man crumbled down to the floor like a rag doll, but that still wasn’t enough for Nines. He yanked Butch back up to his feet, ramming his back against a car door, and he straightened him up a little before beating him violently once again.

“SIR!!! YOU’LL KILL HIM!!!” Justin shrieked from the top of his lungs, wrapping an arm around Nines’ shoulders, but the RK900 merely threw him off his shoulder in once swift, smooth motion. Justin fell back, and then Marlon and Marshall attempted to grab a hold of Nines, but it was no use, either. He was too furious, too strong, too deadly, and one-by-one, he kept knocking back anyone who attempted to even approach him.

“SIR!!!!! PLEASE STOP!!!” Gwen held onto his elbow for a moment as she cried out in fear, and the sirens and ambulance horns blared off even louder and closer in the distance. A fire truck was also approaching, and this made Gavin panic even more. He didn’t want Nines’ reputation to be ruined if he was caught beating Captain Allen’s right-hand man to a bloody pulp. No one was going to let him live this down, and Gavin had to stop him.

As Nines wrapped his hands around Butch’s throat, that was when Gavin raced ahead, and he tried wedging his body between Butch’s and Nines’. As soon as Nines saw Gavin, the murderous expression on his face softened significantly. His eyes were no longer dark and menacing; they were confused, and broken.

“Nines!!!” Gavin gently placed a hand over Nines’ forearm, applying a little bit of pressure, indicating that he wanted Nines to release Butch.

“Please…”

Nines grit his teeth together, and as he stared over at how red Butch was growing in the face, something in him snapped. It was as if a light had been turned on in a dark room, and Nines backed away immediately as he dropped his hands down to his sides.

Butch gulped down mouthfuls of air, coughing as he fell down to his knees and rested flatly on his chest. J.D. rushed to his side first, patting him on the back as he tried holding him up.

“Come on brother, don’t you die on us!!!” he wailed dramatically, and then Maria slapped him on the back of the head in order to silence him.

“He’ll be fine, you big baby!” she snapped in annoyance, “Gavin saved him!”

Nines was looking down at his hands as if they were covered in blood, and his chin quivered for a moment before he peered up at Gavin.

Gavin took a cautious step towards him. “Nines?” he hated how small and frightened his voice was, but he was so scared. What had Nines been about to do?? And why???

Before Gavin could further approach Nines, the android backed away, straightened his tie, and pushed his loose, stray bang back over the rest of his neatly combed back hair. He cleared his throat, and the sirens and police vehicles pulled up behind them.

Captain Fowler was the first to tear out of one, and he ran towards them, paused, stared at the broken glass, thick, heavy clouds of black and grey smoke, burning papers, looked down at J.D. cuddling Butch to his chest, looked at Nines and Gavin, then at the rest of the team, and again at the broken-down warehouse.

Captain Fowler lost it, then, and he exploded in nothing short of pure, undiluted rage. “DOES SOMEONE WANNA TELL ME JUST WHAT IN THE FUCK IS GOING ON HERE?!?!?”

Nines stepped over to him coolly. “Sir,” he began in a calm tone, and Gavin had to wonder how he could’ve gone from murderous to cold and collected in less than sixty seconds. “We just got out of a drug bust gone wrong here…” he pointed at the unconscious woman with long brown hair lying on the ground a few feet away from them.

“…I believe she knows a lot about the Ouroboros leader, sir, so it wasn’t all a futile attempt!”

Captain Fowler’s eyes squinted, and he raised his arms, and then dropped them heavily to his sides as the EMS team ran forth and took Butch away from J.D. A few of them even surrounded the unconscious woman hurriedly, picking her up and placing her onto a stretcher.

“How do we know she’s not dead, Nines?!?” Fowler screamed while the rest of the narcotic enforcement task force team were also checked for damages and bodily harm.

Nines sighed in exhaustion, “She’s not dead, sir, relax.”

“Who the fuck is she anyway?!?”

“I don’t know, sir,” Nines spat, “that’s why when she recovers consciousness, we’re going to interrogate—”

Fowler rounded on Nines, poking his finger into his chin dangerously. “Oh no you fucking don’t, Nines,” he growled angrily as he pointed at the rest of the team, “not until I get a good enough explanation for why in the fuck a member of the S.W.A.T. team looks like he’s had a few fists let loose in his fucking face!!!!”

Gavin and Nines looked back over at Butch, and the man was currently being carefully examined by the medical team as they used scissors and knives to cut away at his vest and clothes so they could take a look at his wounds. He had ice packs pressed to his swollen lips and eyes that were turning blue from bruises.

Nines looked back over at Captain Fowler, though his face held no regrets or remorse over what he’d done, and he clasped his hands behind his back as he held his head up high in the air. “I did what I had to do to keep him in line, Sir.”

Fowler’s jaw fell open in shock. “You--! Y-you did what you had to do to ‘keep them in line’??!”

Nines nodded, “That’s what I said, Sir.”

“The fuck does that shit mean, Nines?!”

The android glared over at him coldly. “He disobeyed my orders as his team leader, and he put everyone’s life in great jeopardy!”

“And that earned him a boot in the face?!?”

Nines shrugged coldly. “Whatever gets the job done, Captain…” his words died on his breath as he sneered down at Butch as he was lifted up off the ground with J.D. clutching one of his boots tightly.

Captain Fowler took a step towards Nines, a hand reaching out and resting on Nines’ sternum for balance, as Captain Fowler looked ready to faint any moment. “Nines,” he breathed out in exhaustion, “I put you in charge of this team for a very, _very_ good reason!” his fingers trembled, but he stopped them from doing that as he shook himself and regained composure. “That reason was to take care of these knuckleheads, and make sure they don’t get hurt; not to beat them up by your own hands yourself!!!!!”

“I’m not a babysitter, Captain,” Nines pushed out evenly, “as far as I’m concerned, I did my job, and Butch chose to show attitude and resistance, and as a result, he got himself injured!”

Captain Fowler’s eyes twitched, and then he squinted at Nines. He raised a fist, and then his index finger poked out slowly. “Listen here, you—”

Suddenly, they were interrupted by loud feminine screams. They were coming from the ground, and as they looked down, they saw the strange woman with dark brown hair rising up slowly from the stretcher she’d been placed on. She pushed her horizontally-cut bangs that covered most of her forehead away with a trembling hand.

“Seus, porcos!!!” she screamed out, her voice cracking as she coughed and wiped her lips. She glared at them, getting up, still, and the medical team rushed to her aid as they grabbed her to help her remain on the stretcher. She immediately fought back when they gently wrapped the straps around her arms.

“Me deixa ir!!” she screamed out in a foreign language, and Fowler pointed at her.

“The fuck is she saying, Nines?!”

“She’s speaking Portuguese, Sir,” Nines explained once he’d deciphered and identified her language of origin. “She’s asking to be let go.”

“HA!” Fowler laughed boisterously, and he walked over towards her as she was tied down to the stretcher. “Fat chance of that happening, Miss Brazil!” he sneered into her face, causing her to twist and turn so violently in her bindings that Captain Fowler leapt back a little.

Gavin looked at her, and then shivered. She was extremely aggressive for a rather thin woman, and she showed no fear-despite the situation she was currently in. As his eyes roamed over the bits of skin she had revealed, he found that unlike the other Ouroboros gang members, she didn’t have their trademark snake tattoo anywhere. Something was very, very odd about this woman, and he knew that the sooner they interrogated her, the better it would be.

Gavin took a step towards Captain Fowler while the woman fought and squirmed as she was being placed inside the back of the ambulance vehicle. “Sir,” he interrupted softly, “we have to interrogate her as soon as possible.”

Fowler rolled his eyes, “No shit, son,” he waved his hand at her as the ambulance doors slammed shut, “she isn’t badly injured, so I’m going to ask Nines to—”

His heart slammed in his chest, and Gavin shook his head. “No, Captain,” he bellowed out quickly, “I want to interrogate her, please.”

Fowler’s face grew dark with fury. “How dare you question my authority—”

“Sir!” Nines suddenly chimed in loudly, causing Fowler’s head to turn so fast that it gave out an audible ‘click’.

“Sir,” Nines repeated, although in a calmer tone of voice this time around. He stared at Gavin for a moment, and then nodded, “I think it would be better for Gavin to interrogate the woman, please.”

Fowler raised a surprised dark eyebrow. “ _Gavin_??” he nearly coughed, “that’s a first, Nines…”

Nines frowned, “Sorry, Sir?”

“You always call Gavin ‘Detective’ or ‘Detective Reed’…” he shook his head in bewilderment, then, “…I need a vacation from all this shit!” as he turned away towards the other officers waiting by for his orders and instructions, Nines followed him closely.

“Sir,” he stated in a clear and firm tone, “let Detective Reed interrogate her. I will keep close watch, should anything come up.”

Captain Fowler waved at him over his shoulder, not even bothering to turn around and face Nines. “Sure, whatever Nines,” he opened the driver’s seat of a police vehicle, and sat down quickly while shaking his head the entire time, “this is your gig, after all.”

He signaled to the rest of his men as they joined him. “Let’s go!”

Engines started up as the medical cars and ambulances drove quickly, leaving a trail of dirt and dust blowing and billowing about in the wind afterwards. Gavin’s eyes turned watery, and he closed them as he turned away from the dust, smoke, cold wind, and commotion that was still lingering about.

Nines waited patiently behind him, and the rest of the narcotics unit stared at them for a few minutes before they too decided to leave them as they headed back to the vehicle they’d arrived in.

Nines and Gavin were alone, and Gavin could feel his husband’s eyes on his back as he turned and faced the long, light brown wooden docks and piers as they stretched themselves out above the surface of the waters that churned and swept about as the wind blew around. The sight of the dark water only made Gavin feel worse as he shivered while standing in the direction the wind was blowing in.

He heard Nines shifting his feet away from him slowly, as if caught in a dream world.

“Whenever you’re ready, Detective.”

The words he spoke were colder than the wind blowing in his face.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin stared at the thin, tall woman seated in one of the hard, silvery chairs in the interrogation room. The temperature of the room had been turned down a lot, more so as a means of making her physically uncomfortable. It didn’t seem to affect her, however; she sat rigidly as her face was slightly bandaged up from where Nines had hit her roughly. Her hair had been pushed back into a loose, messy ponytail, and her hands were cuffed and tied to the hand-slots in the table as she sat waiting to be interrogated.

The lights were bright, and she squinted ahead and up at them as she breathed out evenly, softly, and almost coldly. Prior to being admitted into the room, a female officer had strip-searched her properly, and a female android had scanned her multiple times so that the same mistake of the male gang member committing suicide wouldn’t be repeated in this case.

Gavin still didn’t trust a lot of the ‘safety measures’ they’d taken, and he kept a close eye on every move the woman made as Nines scanned the fingerprints they’d taken off her.

“Irina Zelg,” he stated her name as a list containing and presenting her identity and profile came up on the criminal database.

“Born and raised in Brazil, daughter of Katarina and John Zelg, immigrated to the U.S.A. after accepting a job in a law firm.”

Gavin shook his head, “Let me guess, the job didn’t exist?”

“That’s for you to figure out now, Gavin,” Nines whispered as he sat down on a chair before the monitors and screens, staring out at Irina blankly.

Gavin looked blearily at him. “You’ll be watching us, right?”

Nines didn’t meet his eyes. “You,” he corrected, “I’ll be watching _you_ , Gavin.”

The shorter man nodded. He knew what to do, now, and he stopped stalling as he made his way over to the other side of the wall, and entered the interrogation room. It indeed was super cold in there, but it didn’t bother him as he stuffed his hands in his jean pockets and sat down as comfortably as he could before Irina.

Studying her form and shape closely, Gavin could hardly believe she’d wielded so much strength and ferocity back in the drug warehouse and lab hideout earlier. The woman then who’d attacked him held reverent terror and fire in her eyes, yet this woman seated before him now in the interrogation room? Entirely different woman. Irina Zelg looked well-built and slightly masculine in terms of her body shape, perhaps due to years of strenuous exercise and rigorous working out, but her face seemed sullen, exhausted, and her laugh lines and tiny crow’s feet at the corner of her eyes seemed more prominent.

Then again, Gavin had to consider the fact that this was one of the many masks she could’ve been wearing just to lure him into a false sense of security…

As if to prove his thoughts correctly, Irina glared up at Gavin suddenly, and her facial expression suddenly took an interesting turn.

Smiling lightly, she seemed years younger, more relaxed, and even deadlier. The weary Irina melted away, and the spell was broken.

She took one long look at him and spat out in Portuguese, “Apenas morra, seu pedaço de merda!”

There was an automatic live feed that a microphone picked up, and it translated her words as the screen above and behind her head showed him what she’d said.

“Just die, you piece of shit.”

Gavin smirked, “I know you can speak perfect English, Miss Zelg, so why don’t you drop the act?”

She growled, but stomped her feet down violently on the floor. “Fuck you!”

He nodded, “That’s a good start, Irina…” his eyes skated over her arms and the top of her chest revealed by her thin, loose shirt. “You don’t bear their mark, why is that?”

She snarled, sounding much like a vicious animal, but refused to answer.

_“Fine, I have other ways of making you talk.”_

Gavin coolly nodded. “You don’t have to tell me anything, Irina,” he shrugged as he crossed his arms over his chest, “in fact, I can’t say I would blame you for not wanting to say a word, but you know…” he grinned maliciously, “…I’m sure you have family, friends, a lover…surely they would want you to be protected, no?”

She looked down at the table, still silent.

“…tell me why you don’t have the symbol of the Ouroboros, and I promise that no harm will come to you or your family.”

She was still silent, and Gavin practically saw Nines wanting to interrupt impatiently, but he held out a hand beneath the table, hoping Nines would catch the hint and sit tight. They needed to be absolutely calm and patient, else this was going to go up in flames.

Gavin studied Irina with a tilted head, still smiling coldly. The woman looked everywhere in the room but at him, and finally, when Gavin truly began to believe that all hope was lost, she glared up at him. Her long bangs fell into her almond-shaped eyes, and she sneered a vicious sneer.

She licked her lower lip, moistening it as she hissed out, “I don’t need to tell a man who is trapped in a loveless, fake marriage anything.”

Gavin’s heart and stomach bottomed out immediately. His fingers felt frozen, his heart raced, and then skipped many beats, and he accidentally bit his tongue. He leaned across the table, moving so slowly that he thought his body weighed seven hundred pounds suddenly.

“Wh-what did y-y-you say?” he hated that his confidence was gone, but it now was, and he heard the tables and chairs in the observation room dragging along the floors, indicating that Nines was moving wildly, desperately trying to interrupt.

Irina smirked triumphantly. “I know all about you, Detective Reed,” she spat with ice and venom overpowering her words, “I know that you hate your own husband as much as he hates you, and I know that you may believe you understand what we’re trying to do, but you know so, _sooo_ very little…”

Gavin’s chin quivered, but he fought to knock it off and gain some of his power back. Now wasn’t the time to get emotional!! He leaned over the table, his hands shaking and sweating so badly that he had to rub and wipe them over his jeans.

“H-how do you know th-this?! Who have you b-b-been talking t-t-to?!”

She laughed, and it was like that of a witch cackling evilly. “At least whoever I am talking to can effectively communicate with me…” her eyes widened, giving an eerie feeling in the room spinning and washing all over Gavin, “…it’s not like _you_ , where you can’t communicate with your lover, am I right?”

Gavin saw the door of the interrogation room slamming open, and he got up from his chair, running around the side of the table while Irina cackled loudly over and over again until she was crying tears of joy.

Nines strode in the room wildly, but Gavin grabbed his arms and yanked him out, before he could do or say something to their only suspect and ruin their one shot at nailing the case and finally getting some answers.

“Gavin—”

“Officer!” Gavin snapped his fingers at one of the female androids walking around in the hall, and she hurriedly sped over to them.

“Yes Detective?”

“See to it that…” he shook his head, wiping away some sweat off his forehead, “…see to it that this _woman_ is returned to a holding cell and has around-the-clock surveillance!”

Nines sighed, “Gavin, please—”

He screamed at the female android officer, “DO IT NOW!!”

“Yes sir!!!!” she bolted inside the room, trying to grab a hold of the cackling woman, and after a brief struggle, she dragged her out. Irina was laughing and pointing at Gavin and Nines the entire time, screaming at them in joy as she cried out one last time in the halls.

She repeated the same sentence over and over until she’d been dragged clear out of their sights, but her echoes and cries still remained with them.

“UNLOVED MAN! UNLOVED MAN!!!!!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *Cough* Yeah, I wonder HOW the hell Irina found out all that info about your life too, Gavin -_-


	41. Love's Absolution

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's amazing how 3 little words can mean the entire world to someone...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NSFW CONTENT BELOW  
> Aka sexy times.😏🤤

Gavin stumbled out of the Cadillac, barely giving Nines a chance to park it in the driveway before he unbuckled his seatbelt and ran out into the pouring rain. Truth be told, he hadn’t noticed when the dark clouds had gathered up in the sky, or even when the first bits of rain pattered down over the earth. Gavin sped away on his feet until he reached the medium-sized greenhouse Nines owned on his property by the side of the large mansion.

It was pouring rain, and it was absolutely freezing cold as it beat down over Gavin’s head. He was drenched, but he didn’t care; he stepped around the large boulders decorating the perimeter of the greenhouse, and he was careful not to fall into the small pond surrounding the back of the greenhouse as he leaned his back against a large, silver pillar of a circular dome-shaped shelter that held one little bench for decoration that was just in front of the greenhouse.

Gavin wiped his face clear of any rainwater, and he stared down at his hands as they were covered in clean, pure water. He shook his hands as he took a few steps backwards, resting his body against a stone pillar that was a part of the small dome-shaped shelter right before the greenhouse. He wanted to head inside it, as it promised heat and light, but he didn’t have the energy for it now. He was so livid with the case, and now, with Irina for reading right through everything.

Just who was this woman, and why did she know everything about Gavin and his relationship Nines!??! How was all this happening in the real world?!

His thoughts were a jumbled mess, and he didn’t hear Nines approaching. He was still dressed in a long, black coat, and it was matted to his body as the rain pushed his hair down straightly, making it hang loosely over his temples and ears in stringy bits. He blinked a few times at Gavin, taking slow, measured steps towards him, as if fearful of any reaction.

“Gavin,” he whispered softly, “talk to me, please…”

This seemed to shake Gavin up. Thunder rumbled in the distance, and his eyes flicked up to Nines’.

“H-how did she know everything…” he was speaking more to himself, but Nines sighed dejectedly.

“So what she said was true, then?”

Gavin stared at him for a while, then shook his head as water dripped down from his forehead and into his nose. “What’re you talking about, Nines?!”

The android looked angry for a moment, but then his face softened. “You really think I’m trapping you and keeping you prisoner here with me?” The raindrops dripped down over his forehead, hanging onto his LED light, which had gone from yellow to red, and then back to yellow again. The water circled it, and it made Gavin feel even more guilty than ever, knowing that Nines was focusing on trying not to reveal his true emotions, but his LED light gave him away easily.

Pushing the overwhelming feelings of guilt away for a second, Gavin rolled his eyes painfully. “That’s what you’re stuck on, Nines?! The fuck is wrong with you?!?” There were so many more important things screaming out at them, and Nines was stuck on one stupid thing Irina said? Wow…

Nines scowled heatedly as he took another step closer to Gavin. “So it _is_ true, then?”

Gavin squinted at him, as if seeing him there for the first time ever. “What’re you—”

“You’re the one trapped in a ‘loveless marriage’, Detective, why don’t you tell me?!” Nines screamed, fists tightening into balls by his side as he sneered at Gavin.

The detective shivered, wrapping his hands around himself as Nines continued scowling at him as if he were on trial.

Gavin let out a strained laugh, “Nines! What she said was likely bullshit just to get us frustrated with each other! Don’t you get it?!? It’s always a psychological mind game with these people; you said so yourself many times!!”

Nines shook his head, and Gavin took a step closer towards him as the rain hammered and poured down over the roof of the dome.

“How can you believe her words?”

“I didn’t,” Nines began sternly, but then his facial expression turned to a very pained one, and it hit Gavin right in the center of the heart.

“…I didn’t,” Nines continued solemnly, “…at least not until I saw your reaction upon hearing her words…”

Thunder echoed and boomed above super loudly, as if weighing down guilt over Gavin’s shoulders. He didn’t need this, and he stood tall with his chest puffed out in defiance as he snorted dismissively at Nines.

“Shows you what you know,” he pushed out angrily, “you’re just—”

“Stop prevaricating, Gavin!” Nines roared, almost up in Gavin’s face now as he leaned and craned his neck down and peered directly into Gavin’s wide eyes.

Gavin resisted the urge to shove Nines away from him. “I don’t prevaricate; I obfuscate!” he screamed back angrily.

Nines sneered, “Semantics now, isn’t it?”

Gavin waved him off, shivering as the wind blew a breeze by him, but it also blew the freshly clean scent of the soil and grass, reminding him of his younger years when he’d gone camping and fishing in the summers with his father, and they’d been trapped in the rain much like this, as well. He suddenly shivered as he looked down at his feet.

_“I miss my mom, I miss my dad, I miss being a kid…back when things and feelings weren’t so complicated…”_

As if reading his thoughts, Nines inched closer to him while a dangerous glint was in his eyes. His face pulled back into a horrifying, pained expression that also hinged on an aggressive one. He stared at Gavin as he grit his teeth at him. “Don’t worry, Detective Reed,” Nines uttered icily as his eyes turned vicious, “once this case is over, I assure you, you’ll be entirely rid of me.”

Gavin frowned, “What’re you—”

“So eager to be free, aren’t you?” Nines laughed, and his breath hitched in his throat, then, and a sad expression overcame him as he shook his head slowly at Gavin. “Don’t you fear, Detective Reed,” he nodded, then, “I won’t be bothering you for much longer now that we have Irina to aid us in wrapping up the case.”

Gavin snapped at him, unable to hold back any longer, “Fuck you, Nines!” He held back on punching the android hard in the jaw as emotions overwhelmed him while the rain grew stronger and stronger, blowing into their faces.

“It’s _you_ who always wanted me gone, just admit it!”

Nines was silent, and this seemed to confirm everything for Gavin. All his worst fears of being unaccepted, unwelcome, and unwanted came to haunt him, and he felt his heart shattering and falling down to his feet in a million pieces.

He pointed at Nines, “See? Even now, you can’t deny it!” Gavin cried out angrily and partly in pain as he felt the burdens of his feelings bringing him down. He cursed himself for ever allowing the opportunity to arise where he would use his heart instead of his brain. What had he been thinking by allowing Nines into his heart, and into his life?! He was such a fool! This was why he didn’t do relationships; they all ended in tears and sadness, and this was no different just because he had a ring on his finger. He’d been swept up in the wave and messy sea of emotions and hopes, and now that they’d all come crashing down revealing the nature of reality in the way like a thick wall, he’d crashed into it face-first, and he had no one to blame but himself for it.

He was beyond hurt, and he didn’t know how to react for once in his life. Gavin hated this, because it signified that he was a changed man. The old Gavin Reed would’ve beaten the shit out of the taciturn, rude android before him. The old Gavin Reed would’ve never hesitated to swear at him and curse him from here till tomorrow…but this current Gavin Reed he was??? He couldn’t even imagine laying a finger on Nines to hurt him. What. Had. Become. Of. Him?!

Trying to gather the last bits of his dignity, Gavin pressed out hurriedly, “You’ve wanted me gone since the moment I arrived Nines, and it’s never going to change, EVER!”

“That’s absolutely incorrect, and always will be,” came the emotional response not even a second after Gavin’s outburst. The android raised his head up high, eyes swimming with all kinds of emotions. Gavin didn’t like seeing it. It was hurting his heart, and it was toying with his feelings. He was so, so confused. He hated this, and he felt so weak as he trembled-and it wasn’t alone from the wind and rain.

“You…you just…” he wiped his eyes, as there were a few tears brimming and welling up within his depths there. “You can’t expect me to believe that for even one second, Nines, you—”

“I love you, Gavin.”

Thunder slammed across the sky, and Gavin’s eyes widened. He felt rooted to the spot; completely incapable of moving, completely incapable of all thought and speech. He surely had been hearing things, right? Chancing a glance up at Nines, he found that the stoic and composed android held quite the pained, broken, and troubled facial expression.

Nines was likely facing inner turmoil, but it didn’t seem to be due to his abrupt confession; he seemed serious about this, but also, he appeared to be holding back on displaying raw fear as his eyebrows clenched tightly together on his brow ridge and his eyes widened a fraction.

But what was he scared of?

“I love you more than you know,” Nines suddenly admitted and pushed it out again, as if Gavin hadn’t heard him the first time. His face was serious-yet passionate, and he seemed to be holding a lot of his fears and emotions back as he waited for Gavin to say something…anything…

Gavin sputtered at him. This was unbelievable. Surely Nines was only saying these things now, to keep him protected and safe! That was all it was! There was just no way Gavin Reed was standing in the pouring, freezing, heavy rain, soaked from head to toe, right before his husband-his _fake_ husband-who was also equally drenched in rainwater, and there was no way on earth he was hearing one of the most random love confessions in the world.

No.

Way.

Gavin looked down at the floor of the little shelter, shaking his head, as if trying to wake up from the surreal dream. When he looked back up at Nines, he saw that he hadn’t been asleep nor dreaming; this was happening, and it was as real as the icy cold raindrops dripping down from the ends of his hair down over his neck and spine. He repressed multiple shivers as he took another step back and then licked his lips.

Nines stared evenly and seriously at him, not even blinking for a moment. Behind them, the rain slowed down a little, but it was still coming down roughly and violently. It accompanied the steady-but firm-beating of Gavin’s heart, and he spun around until he was leaning against one of the many pillars of the dome shelter.

He knew his face was beet red, but there was nothing he could do about it, now, and he didn’t want to hide from Nines more than he already had. Gavin could feel Nines’ eyes on him, and it made him finally look up as he sniffled.

“And what about Butch?” the question threw Nines off, and he scowled, looked disturbed, and then shocked. Eventually, all those expressions disappeared off his face entirely, and he offered Gavin a completely blank gaze.

Eventually, Nines snapped out of his statuesque state. “Butch…Butch??” he said the name with such a shocked and surprised element in his tone that it was unbecoming of him.

Gavin nodded, “When you were beating the bloody daylights out of him, was that because you loved me?” Gavin knew he was pushing it by asking this, but he truthfully had no idea anymore what Nines’ ulterior motive was in all this. Whatever it was, Gavin knew he didn’t want to risk getting hurt. He was too far deep in this already, and he needed to know where Nines stood on the grand, delicate field of the game they were playing.

Nines’ eyebrows were set low on his brow, and he was scowling deeply as he’d never scowled before. “I did what was necessary to defend your honor, and you mock me and reject me…” something painful etched its way onto Nines’ facial features as he shook his head while taking half a step back from Gavin as though the detective had injured and wounded him, “…how typical of you to do this.”

Thunder rumbled again, as if in a warning, but Gavin didn’t want to stop now that the train had already taken off. He needed to know just what Nines was expecting from him.

“No Nines,” he stated angrily, “no one does anything like that for free; not in this world!”

_“Not in my world…”_

With renewed confidence and strength, Nines took a step towards him, hands shaking in anger as he tried controlling himself from lashing out and exploding. “That’s what you think motivates me, Gavin?”

Gavin glared angrily as he wiped his forehead, “What else could it be??” He refused to entertain the idea that had been brewing in the back of his head…that maybe, perhaps…perhaps Nines really was doing it without holding any expectations in return…no…

It worried and frightened him to think of that as a potential possibility, and he shook his head. If he let himself get swept up in such a crazy idea, he was only heading in for the sad reality of facing disappointment and heartache. Why should he even be a fool to play that game?

“Nines,” he ground out, steadying himself as he stared mostly at the ground, “even if what you’re saying is the truth…” he shook and his breath died down in his throat, but he pushed himself to finish his thoughts, “…even _if_ there is a small chance that this is really how you feel, there’s just no way that you and I could ever be together—”

In the time it’d taken for lightning and thunder to flash across the dark, cloudy sky and terrify him, Nines had stepped up before Gavin, and he was so close that their noses brushed together. Gavin’s eyes snapped shut automatically, and the words died down on his tongue.

Nines gently placed a hand on his cheek, his fingers toying softly with Gavin’s skin as he caressed him for a few minutes. Gavin found himself leaning desperately and so needy into the touches, and he couldn’t stop. Nines had a good hold on him, and he seemed to not want to let go…

Eyes finally opening after summoning all the strength and willpower he had left, Gavin found himself looking into sharp blue eyes. Nines was looking at his lips, and the way he was looking at him made Gavin feel dizzy with need. He gripped Nines’ shoulders tightly, and as Nines snaked a hand up along his sternum, his index finger coaxed Gavin’s head to tilt upwards as Nines rubbed it beneath Gavin’s chin.

They stayed like that; clinging to each other desperately, and finally, when lightning flashed once more across the vast sky, Nines pressed his forehead right against Gavin’s, and as his lips hovered barely half an inch above Gavin’s, he looked down at the shorter male, studying his face closely for a few fleeting moments.

Nines thought Gavin looked so clean and radiant in the wind and rain, and as a few birds chirped softly while the rain gradually died down, Nines focused his eyes on the sheer look of joy and exhilaration Gavin had displayed all over his face whilst his eyes were still closed. Those tightly shut eyelids made Nines’ own feel heavy, and he closed his eyes, following with the intense passion bubbling and churning between himself and his husband. As he leaned his head down, he wrapped his fingers around Gavin’s, and finally pressed his lips firmly over Gavin’s.

They kissed as if they were unable to stop, never minding the wind, the rain, and the little bit of sunlight that eventually peeked out from between soft-grey clouds.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin was gently pushed against his partly closed bedroom door, and the moment his back hit the wood of the door, it pressed open all the way. Shelley was hovering around his bed, but when she saw Nines and Gavin hurriedly entering the room while their hands roamed along each other’s bodies and their lips were passionately connected, she whispered an expletive as she zipped out of the room. The door closed behind her, but Gavin and Nines didn’t notice it as they hurriedly started to tear off each other’s clothes.

Nines closed his eyes, trying to get a hold on himself; to achieve some measure of control. His mind was shattered and racing, his thoughts a cauldron of tenderness and loathing, panic, resentment, and anger. An alchemy of dark and light, boiling and blending and adding up to this wild, raging hunger. He wanted to grab the man before himself and shake him. To collapse against Gavin and weep out all his sorrows and frustrations. He wanted to consume the man, to feed on the light in those vivid eyes until it flickered and died out. To touch Gavin’s skin reverently, to worship him like a supplicant at an altar of light.

Gavin blew his mind wide open, bathed it in cold, hard brightness, vast and dizzy, relentless and a dazzling sea of uncertainty. There was no place to hide, not from himself, not from Gavin. He was being undone, and Gavin was the cause, and the remedy. To touch the man he loved was to be consumed by sweet waves of dark sensation, to drown out the horrible brightness with simple, overpowering desire.

Gavin whimpered, and Nines opened his eyes. The shorter male was pinned under him, flat on his back, his pants open and a pair of cotton boxers sitting low on his hips. The detective’s swollen lips slightly parted, and his tongue glistened between them. His eyes flickered in and out of view as his eyes flashed in the glow of the sunlight seeping through clouds now that the storm had passed.

Nines swept the short male into his arms, one hand wrapped firmly behind Gavin’s neck, holding the exact spot where he had held Gavin earlier that afternoon. Gavin stared up at him, his blue-grey eyes wide and wild beneath the sexual fog brewing between them, his lips parted and slightly soft.

Nines lowered his body slowly over Gavin’s, drew Gavin’s lower lip into his mouth and sucked gently. He then kissed him full-on, caressing the small tongue with his own. Gavin made a surprised sound; an unbelievably arousing sound. His hands slid up the length of Nines’ body, leaving hot, tingling trails through the last bits of Nines’ dark undergarments. He wished he could divest the android of all his clothes, but his hands trembled and shook too much. Wrapping his arms around Nines’ shoulders, he couldn’t stop his hands from moving down his husband’s strong back and finally squeezing his firm ass.

When Gavin did this, a wave of blinding sensation rushed through Nines, and he moaned deep into Gavin’s throat. He was crushing the man’s lips, kissing him wildly, unable to prevent his own hips from grinding exquisitely into the heat of Gavin’s erection. So hot, so hard, even through their clothes. Nines was not going to last long.

He shifted his weight and let himself fall to Gavin’s side, allowing his hands access to Gavin’s whole body. His hips, which seemed to have a mind of their own, moved against Gavin’s thigh, and he made a high, involuntary sound, almost a whine. He ran his hand down Gavin’s slender side, hooked his thumb over a hip bone, which felt very warm, even through the fabric of Gavin’s boxers. Finally, Nines moved his hand toward the hot space where Gavin’s pants opened in a V. The detective’s heated erection tented his boxer shorts, twitching in a steady, needy rhythm.

Nines propped himself up on one arm and circled his palm over the thin cotton. The fabric stuck damply to Gavin’s skin; he could feel the feel the softness of the skin and crisp roughness of pubic hair. Smoothness and heat. Gavin whined, thrusting desperately into Nines’ hand. There was something unbelievably pure about the detective’s desperate abandon; his face shiny with sweat, his hands grasping and twisting at the sheets, his eyes slightly foggy and askew.

Gavin’s cock was burning beneath his hand. Nines’ blood was roaring in his ears, his thirium pump pounding through his body. Gavin’s eyes were wide open, shining with hot and cold lights, and Nines was suddenly certain that if he didn't look away, he would sink into those eyes and never find his way back. He wondered what he looked like to Gavin, from behind those eyes.

Gavin licked Nines along the length his throat, humming in satisfaction when he noticed that his husband tasted like rainwater. Gavin wanted more, so he sucked lightly on any bit of skin his mouth and lips were able to reach while Nines shrugged him out of his pants. Nines swiftly picked Gavin up into his arms, and he threw him down onto the center of his bed. While Gavin stared up at Nines for a second, the android was hastily taking off his own pants and socks. He kicked them aside, and in no time, he was on top of Gavin once more.

Both of them still had their underwear on, but Gavin knew that wasn’t going to be a permanent thing; not with how wildly Nines was grabbing him everywhere. Nines’ hands heated his once-cold flesh, and Gavin shivered from the warmth and excitement coursing through him like wildfire spreading. Nines kissed his way down to Gavin’s chest, latching his tongue around a nipple, which drew a strained moan from Gavin. Nines lavished a lot of attention to the left nipple before moving to the right, and when he did, the nipple that wasn’t being made love to by his mouth received ample amounts of attention from his fingers. Nines rolled the hard nubs between his thumb and index finger, drawing out plenty of loud, sensual moans from Gavin.

Nines wrapped one of Gavin’s legs around his waist, and he hurriedly reached between their bodies to cup Gavin’s arousal through his underwear. This made Gavin buckle up and arch his back into the air, and he blushed immediately. He had no idea how it was that he was responding so well in Nines’ hands, but he was. Soon, he felt like jelly, and he lay back as Nines slowly pulled his underwear down.

It felt a little uncomfortable and weird having his bare flesh rubbing against the fabric of Nines’ underwear, but before Gavin could focus more on that, Nines leaned down, and began kissing and licking a hot wet trail down Gavin’s chest and over his hips. He sucked on each hipbone for at least two minutes before he bit and nibbled the strong bones. This all made Gavin pant desperately, and he was a hot, sweaty mess. His hands fisted Nines’ dark brown hair, but the android didn’t seem to mind as he made his way down to Gavin’s cock and stroked it a few times slowly.

Getting a little irritated by the lazy strokes, Gavin growled in the back of his throat, begging Nines to cut the teasing short. Nines seemed to finally take the hint, and he kissed the insides of Gavin’s thighs from top to bottom, slowly spreading Gavin’s legs in the process. He made room for himself as he settled between Gavin’s legs, and as the other man tried stroking himself to full hardness, Nines moved off the bed for a moment, and he padded away into the bathroom down the hall.

Gavin knew where he’d gone to, and as he waited in silence for a moment, he shivered and realized just how cold he was without Nines. It took every bit of control he had left not to cry out for his lover, and just in time, Nines arrived with a bottle of lube Gavin had brought with him before he moved in with Nines. Gavin looked away from it shyly, but lazily played with himself while staring into Nines’ eyes deeply. It was a relief that he wouldn’t need the lube for solo purposes, and the thought that he’d be using it with Nines made him lightheaded and giddy with lust and pleasure. He continued slowly stroking himself as Nines watched the sensual show for a moment.

“So shameless,” Nines purred, and then joined him back on the bed. Placing the lube on a pillow near Gavin’s head, Nines continued his oral exploration of Gavin’s body. He took his time; kissing down to Gavin’s ankles, and nibbling back up behind his thighs as he spread his legs more. Gavin threw his head back and moaned his husband’s name, feeling Nines’ breath ghosting over his erection.

But Nines didn’t take Gavin into his mouth like the shorter man originally suspected; instead, he moved down lower, and he placed Gavin’s left leg over his shoulder, draping it carefully over his broad frame as he placed his lips over Gavin’s most private orifice.

Gasping out in shock, Gavin tried pushing away, but Nines held his hips down firmly.

“Shhh,” he cooed and coaxed Gavin, “it’s getting impossible for me not to have a taste, Gavin…are you really going to deny me, my husband?”

The way Nines had said the word ‘husband’ broke Gavin. He fell limply into the mattress, sinking deeply into the center, and he allowed Nines to do as he pleased. The RK900 was far too overjoyed, and he kissed Gavin everywhere, as if unsure of where to start first. He eventually settled for right over Gavin’s entrance, and his tongue soon flicked out over the puckered hole. It was a slow, experimental lick; just barely there, and it had Gavin reeling and almost swooning from pleasure.

He was letting out a stream of garbled nonsense, but it fueled Nines. He pressed tiny kisses to Gavin’s entrance before licking a long, slow-teasingly slow-stripe from his perineum to the base of his cock. Gavin almost screamed, but Nines pressed a hand against his mouth as he snickered. He delivered a tiny nip to the inside of Gavin’s right thigh, as if punishing him for making so much noise. Before long, Nines returned his attention to Gavin’s hole. He licked it slowly-but thoroughly, and Gavin was about to die from the pleasure of it.

Wanting so desperately to fist his cock and get rid of the painful teasing, Gavin tried grabbing at himself, but Nines snatched his hand in his own, and pressed it down on the mattress. He was completely overpowering Gavin, but the other man didn’t mind it.

Nines couldn’t help it; he wanted more of a taste from Gavin. He didn’t stop himself from leaning closer and letting his long tongue flick out and graze the softness of Gavin’s nether region. He heard his husband gasp, but Nines wanted at least one more in-depth taste. He suddenly plunged his tongue inside Gavin and lapped away at him rapidly before he gently grabbed onto Gavin’s waist and pulled him down a little closer so that his hips were aligned with his forehead.

Gavin now had more than a tingling sensation burning between his legs; he now also felt his hole twitching greedily, begging for more from the talented tongue his husband had been bestowed with. His tongue had felt so good and hot against him that Gavin wanted all of Nines more than anything now. He made a grab for the lube, popping open the lid as he tossed it over to Nines.

“Do it, now, before I force you to,” he spat out hurriedly.

Grinning ear-to-ear, Nines coated his fingers liberally in the lube, and he kept his eyes on Gavin the entire time. He’d already made up his mind that he still wasn’t going to penetrate Gavin, however, as he knew the human wouldn’t be able to take his length and girth just yet in the heat of the moment, and he didn’t want to end up hurting Gavin. They had rushed this already, but Nines knew how else he could please his husband just the same.

Once his fingers were dripping wet, Nines gently pushed himself up over Gavin, and leaning his head on his chest so he could listen to and feel his heartbeat, he gently massaged his hole openly for a few moments. He wanted Gavin to grow accustomed to how his touch felt, and he took his time. His hand moved slowly, back and forth, up and down, and then in little circles, his fingers curling and twisting deliciously. He kept a close watch on Gavin, looking out for signs of discomfort. There weren’t any, and Gavin’s hand snaked out and he pressed it down on Nines’ chest when the android rose up to stare down intimately at his husband.

“Moooore,” Gavin purred out, and Nines obliged him.

He gently used his thumb and index finger to part Gavin’s hole slightly, and he slid a finger inside him. It was just the tip, and Gavin hissed out in surprise. Nines raised an eyebrow, LED light yellow and cautious.

“It’s cold!” Gavin gasped, and then his eyes closed back in pleasure when Nines began pumping him carefully. Grabbing onto Gavin’s limp hands, Nines removed one of them from his chest, and he placed Gavin’s hand over top of his own as he fisted Gavin’s erection.

“Niiiiiines!” Gavin tore and clawed at Nines’ underwear, clearly wanting him to be naked as well, but Nines was too busy trying to slide another finger inside Gavin to pay attention. He moved his fingers delicately and carefully, stretching Gavin as far as he could before he sensed the other man tightening and clamping his muscles down around his finger like a vice. It felt deliciously wonderful, and Nines felt himself leaking away into his underwear already.

Gavin was in not much better of a condition; his hair was matted to his forehead, and he was clawing at Nines’ back while Nines moved their hands together in a few well-practiced and well-timed strokes. The rhythm of their hands matched the rhythm Gavin was being fucked in by Nines’ fingers, and when Nines added a third after making sure the digit was well coated in the lubricant, he shifted his weight over to the side so he could finally finish by providing one of the hottest and most intense orgasms for his husband.

It took no more than four more quick pulls on Gavin’s cock, and the man was crying out for Nines wantonly. He threw his head back and came all over Nines’ hand and between their bodies. As he spilled over and over, Nines still pumped him with his fingers, but he slowed the pace down gradually, pressing his lips over Gavin’s chest where his heart was. He placed a soft kiss above Gavin’s heart, and the other man groaned softly. He was completely satiated and satisfied, and he wore a grin of utter enjoyment on his face while Nines bit lightly on his neck.

Gavin stared down at Nines’ underwear, and he sighed when he saw the obvious tent there. “You didn’t let me take care of you…”

Nines chuckled. “I wanted today to be about you, Gavin,” he kissed his husband on the forehead smoothly. “You can please me another time.”

Gavin nodded, staring up into Nines’ blue eyes. He was completely overrun by the emotions and memories of how wonderful he felt when Nines admitted that he loved him. It was a feeling of elation like no other, and as Gavin tried focusing on it, reality slowly knocked back into him when he recalled their initial argument.

He sighed and wiped his tired eyes. As he was staring off at the ceiling, a weird realization suddenly came knocking into his skull. It started like a small throb, and then turned into a huge pain, as if someone had beat him over the head with a baseball bat. Now that the lust had worn off, Gavin was able to think clearly.

Nines was trying to clean him off, but Gavin leapt up in bed as he spun around and suddenly screamed out, “Dear God! I know how Irina got all her information about me!!!”

_“Dear God…I know…I now know…”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fuckin' finally, Gavin. Took you long enough to piece it together -_-  
> Maybe if you focused on your work instead of thinking about fucking Nines all day, we'd be able to make some god damn--
> 
> Jks, Gavin honestly deserved Nines being super loving and attentive, but trust me, Gavin is now alert and on to YOU KNOW WHO.


	42. Damned Saint, Honourable Villain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Raoul's in deep shit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lady Irina's words translated: Engasgue-se animal = Choke, animal

**Gavin R: heyyy u, how r u?**

**Raoul: good, u?**

**Gavin R: not bad, just missed u…**

**Raoul: really?**

**Gavin R: yes, wanna hang out a bit?**

**Raoul: wow, this is like a miracle…u sure ur ok?**

**Gavin R: yes, y wouldnt i be?**

**Raoul: becauz u never reach out to me haha**

**Gavin R: i do! and i wanna talk and see u…is that so bad?**

**Raoul: not unless ur husband finds out**

**Gavin R: he wont dont worry. It’ll just be us.**

**Raoul: come over now?**

**Gavin R: of course.**

**Raoul: want me to come get u?**

**Gavin R: no, i’ll take a cab**

**Raoul: k, cya soon sexy**

**Gavin R: u bet**

Gavin held up his phone before Nines once the last message had been sent. Nines nodded stiffly as he checked the entire conversation thread for himself.

“Good,” he said curtly, straightening his clothes as he walked outside of the house.

Gavin held his phone tightly in a hand as he slipped on his dark brown sweater and moved towards the passenger side door of the black Cadillac.

“Raoul Spencer,” he stated the man’s name while Nines grabbed the car keys and sat down in the driver’s seat. “That’s who’s been following me, watching me, and giving all my information to Irina.”

Nines sighed as he stared out the windshield as he spoke calmly, “And this man was once your classmate?”

Waiting for Nines to start the vehicle up, Gavin shrugged. “We weren’t too close, but I bumped into him when I was grocery shopping, and since then, it left a bitter taste for me.”

Nines hummed, “Can’t imagine why that would be…” there was a hint of jealousy evident and clear in his tone, and it made Gavin stare at him blankly for a moment. Everything slowly clicked, then, and he lay a soothing hand over his husband’s thigh as Nines silently drove out of the street.

Not liking the heavy and painful silence, Gavin sighed as he stared at Nines apologetically. The android turned to stare at him, and he cast his eyes downward. “Why didn’t you tell me you went out to meet this man twice?” There was plenty of pain and disappointment raw and evident in Nines’ tone, and it cut Gavin like a butcher’s knife over a slab of fresh meat.

Cringing in his seat, Gavin let out a small half-shrug. “I thought you’d be mad at me, Nines…” he admitted truthfully, still a little ashamed of himself for coming up with such a childish excuse.

Raising an eyebrow, Nines tried not to wander into judgmental territories. He remembered the conversation he’d had with Harris Reed, and he frowned in thought. “Gavin,” he began slowly, his mind selecting his words cautiously, “you can’t continue going through life hiding things from people who care about you just because you’re wary of disappointing them or hurting them.”

Gavin nodded sadly, “I know, Nines.”

“I only wanted to protect you,” Nines carried on with an air of sadness about, “and I’ll have you know; I’ll never be angry with you if you tell me the truth.”

“I’m sorry,” Gavin blushed and mentally scolded himself for being so careless. He looked out the window and scowled at his own reflection. “I’m not really used to askin’ people for help, Nines,” he admitted softly, his breath heating and fogging up the window slightly, “you know, I grew up in a religious home, and I thought I’d be eternally damned just for likin’ men, so I learned to pretend, shake things off, put a smile on my face, and hide things as best as I could.”

Nines stared at him evenly. “I understand, Gavin,” he then gently placed his hand over Gavin’s arm, and the other man looked over at him finally, “but you’re a part of me, now,” he smiled warmly at Gavin, “and I really don’t want my _husband_ in any danger.”

Smirking, Gavin chuckled lightly, “You’re angry at me, admit it.”

Shaking his head, Nines turned to stare at the road and traffic ahead. “I’d never be angry with you, Gavin,” he stated softly as he frowned lightly, “my job is to guard and keep you safe from harm, but I suppose I very much failed at that task when you couldn’t even trust me enough to approach me and discuss this ‘Raoul’.”

“It wasn’t your fault, Nines,” Gavin assured him warmly as he reached for Nines’ hand, just barely touching it. “I was foolish, and I got ahead of myself thinking I could keep certain things from you.”

“I respected your privacy enough not to pry, although, I did indeed wonder why you had such a sudden interest in visiting Lieutenant Anderson and Connor more as of late…” Nines hummed as his eyes moved to the right for a brief second before they stared ahead at the road once more.

All was silent in the car yet again. Nines refused to look at Gavin, but he snuck a hand down and wove their fingers together when he sensed the heat Gavin’s hand was giving off. Gavin smiled in relief. “It’ll be okay, Nines,” he calmly affirmed to his husband, “Raoul Spencer won’t be putting up too much of a barrier…he once couldn’t even handle himself during a fist-fight after classes, and he ended up with a battered and bloody nose for a full day afterwards.”

Turning to him, Nines raised a dark brown eyebrow. “How do you know that?”

Gavin grinned very slowly, and his smile was bright as his eyes twinkled with playfulness. “I was the one who beat him up.”

At once, Nines’ eyes widened as he stared on, and Gavin grinned devilishly at him. It was contagious, apparently, and Nines also broke out into a grin. They both started laughing loudly as they drove down the streets and highways carefully, and it wasn’t long before Nines reached out with a hand and wiped away a stray tear from Gavin’s cheeks as he laughed so hard, he’d cried.

They held hands tightly while Gavin placed his phone on his lap and stared out the window.

“So,” Nines cleared his throat, “what’s the plan?”

Gavin smiled out the window, enjoying how the colors spun like a wonderful pinwheel in the warm, gentle breezes of the summer. As a child, he’d often lost himself in hours of entertainment and joy he received from paper pinwheels, and now, the world was his pinwheel. It brought him great zeal and joy, and he was only going to enjoy it and keep on living now that he found someone he really cared about and connected with, and had that individual by his side.

Things were at least a little easier now with Nines in his life, and he was here to stay, as far as Gavin was concerned.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

**Gavin R: im here**

**Raoul: coming down, 1 sec!**

Gavin pocketed his phone and nodded at Nines while the tall android hid behind Raoul’s front door and kept to the side. He pressed himself against the bricks, trying to stay as far out of view as possible. They both heard Raoul’s footsteps thumping down from the second floor of the house, and after fumbling with the lock of the front door, Raoul swung it open for Gavin.

He was wearing a grey t-shirt and ripped blue jeans, but his face lit up when he saw Gavin. He must’ve been showering earlier, as his hair was still wet. “Hey you,” he smirked, and Gavin smiled back.

“Hey.”

In an instant, Nines turned to face Raoul, and the moment he came into full view, the other man’s smile died away.

Gavin’s didn’t, however; he smiled even wider. “Hope you don’t mind that I brought someone with me…”

Before Raoul could do or say anything in response, Nines wrapped a hand around his shoulders, and he shoved him backwards inside the house. As Raoul slid and fell back a few feet, Gavin stepped into the house.

Hissing at Nines when he saw his husband advancing towards Raoul rather aggressively, he warned, “Don’t beat him up, Nines! God!!”

Glaring down menacingly at Raoul, Nines dug his fingers into the other man’s shirt, and he hoisted him back onto his feet. “I can’t really promise you that, Gavin,” Nines admitted, death and murder evident and promised in his eyes as he stared at Raoul up and down while the other man trembled in his grasp. “I’ve been honestly wanting this son of a bitch’s head on a silver platter ever since I learned about him…”

“Well as good as that may feel,” Gavin began in a deep tone, “it won’t allow us to learn anything about the case, will it??!” Gavin then slammed and locked the door behind them, and he then proceeded to pull down every curtain in the house as quickly as he could. As Raoul struggled, Nines held out his I.D. before him as he sneered viciously.

“Before you even dare to speak, you _will_ hand me your phone, and you _will_ start explaining why you’ve been keeping an eye on Gavin.”

………

Sensing Raoul’s hesitation, Nines leaned against him and whispered while pointing down at the center of the floor, “This spot marks your grave; you may rest here early, if you like.”

His words shook Raoul, and as his fingers itched and wriggled towards his back pocket where his phone was, Gavin snatched it out of his jean pocket, and he handed it to Nines.

“Please don’t—”

“If you have anything to say, Mr. Spencer,” Nines began in a cold drawl, “it would be a lot better for you to start with the truth, first and foremost.” He hacked Raoul’s phone, and he hissed when he saw outgoing calls to private numbers. His eyes flickered back up to Raoul’s, and he snarled at him as he waved the phone before his face.

“These calls took place on the night Gavin was shot at, at precisely four minutes prior to the shooting…” he held the phone up for Gavin to take a look at himself, and the detective’s eyebrows fell down into a frown when he pointed at the contact’s name on Raoul’s phone.

“Lady Irina??!”

Nines chuckled, “Unless he knows of another ‘Irina’, how much do you want to wager that this is Miss Zelg?”

Gavin looked at Raoul with a shocked expression while the other man grew pale and sickly-looking, and Nines continued. “According to the pings, the location the calls took place were directly across the street…” he suddenly gasped, and leaned his face into the phone as a surprised expression crossed his face, “…he’s also forwarded every text message communication you had directly to Lady Irina, Gavin…”

It all made sense, now.

That shadowy figure Gavin had spotted in the alleyway across his own apartment building hadn’t been a figment his mind and imagination had conjured up at all; it’d been Raoul watching him closely, read to give the signal to Lady Irina.

How could Raoul argue out of this one?? It was damn near impossible, and the other man in question must’ve sensed it, too. He sniffled as he shook his head and placed a hand on his forehead. “Please,” he whined pathetically, “you don’t understand!!”

Gavin let out a dry laugh, “ _We_ don’t understand??? Are you fuckin’ kiddin’ me, Raoul?!”

What kind of a game was this?!? Raoul had more than likely sold Gavin out to Ouroboros, yet _he_ was the one begging for mercy?? It was unacceptable, and even Nines seemed ready to attack Raoul. He grabbed him by the front of his shirt, and he shoved Raoul as hard and as far as he could. The man went stumbling backwards until he landed by the stove, and his back rammed into the door of the appliance.

“Wait!! Wait!!!” Raoul held up both hands pleadingly, but that only worked on causing Gavin to stop and stare at him in mild surprise. Nines wasn’t interested in listening to excuses and pleas; he was already advancing quickly on Raoul, and he again seized him by the throat and shoved him hard against the stove.

Nines’ eyes grew dark with fury and rage as Gavin had never seen before, and he was glad that it wasn’t he who was on the side receiving the anger from Nines.

Raoul fell down to his knees as Nines shoved him roughly down, and he cowered and shook violently, as if expecting to be beaten within an inch of his life. This set off some warning bells in Gavin’s detective mind. Raoul was clearly afraid of something, and the way he was acting seemed to suggest that someone had likely threatened his life before in order to get him to do something…

“Nines!” Gavin cried out suddenly, and it was in such a loud outburst, that it made the android stare over at him in pause. Nines almost grew angry again, but he seemed to exert self-control, and he moved half an inch way from Raoul as he trembled on the floor.

Nines tilted his head down at Gavin, a multitude of facial expressions flying across his face in less than a few seconds. “What is it, Gavin?” he began in a soft hiss, “don’t tell me that you’re willing to let this man go when he clearly was responsible for you nearly being shot!!”

Gavin scowled, “I know that! But Nines,” he shook his head as his eyes widened, “he’s also being targeted; he’s a victim…”

Raoul slowly got up; his hands clasped together almost like he was worshipping a religious zealot in a holy temple. “P-please,” he stammered out slowly and brokenly, “my s-son, they th-threatened to hurt my boy!”

Nines was already snarling, as if objecting that idea immediately. “Don’t you play emotional and manipulative games with us, you—” he stopped midway when Gavin placed a comforting, gentle hand on his chest. He turned to his husband, and his angry expressions died way like the end of a horrible storm when he saw how pained Gavin appeared to be.

“Nines, please,” he whispered softly, and it just caressed the android’s audio receptors gently, like an embrace. “I feel he is telling the truth…”

Nines peered down at Raoul, already setting to work scanning him, and he determined quickly that yes, Raoul was indeed being honest. He could hardly believe it, himself. He stared down at the floor shamefully as he shook his head and frowned.

Raoul wiped a tear away from his cheek as it slowly dripped down. Gavin hadn’t even noticed he’d been crying, and it made him feel a lot worse about how they’d handled and roughhoused Raoul. The man deserved a chance to at least explain himself, and if Nines didn’t want to hear it, he didn’t have to, but Gavin himself wanted an explanation.

He bent down as he stared into Raoul’s eyes, trying to make sure the other man wouldn’t look away from his gaze. “Raoul,” he gently urged in a pleading tone, “you have to tell me exactly what’s going on, because that’s the only way I’ll be able to truly help you…”

The other man nodded, wiping away his tears as he pushed out hurriedly, “P-Paul’s sick,” he trembled again and inhaled sharply, “h-he suffers from asthma, a-and has heart problems!!”

Gavin looked at Nines, but before they could say anything, Raoul stood up, and he walked over towards the fridge. Standing up on his toes, his hands moved to the top of it, and he fumbled around for something for a few minutes before he held a piece of paper in his hands. He then marched over down the hall with Nines closely behind him, and he threw open the main-floor bathroom.

“I’ll sh-show you!” he cried out angrily as he yanked open a medicine cabinet drawer, and when Gavin joined them both in the bathroom, he let out a surprised gasp. There had been tons of pills and drugs in the medicine cabinet, as well as asthma inhalers. Raoul grabbed one tightly in his hands, and he flung it at Nines.

“LOOK!” he screamed viciously as he pointed out at the prescription label printed onto the green inhaler case. “It reads ‘Paul Spencer’!!!!!!”

After he’d screamed this fact out, he straightened the document he held in his other hand, and Gavin was the first to read it. It was a medical document that stated that Paul had a weak heart condition and need to do coronary angioplasty and stent implantation surgery to help increase and improve the blood flow to his heart.

Gavin nearly blanched as he thought about it, and then read over the document once again in disbelief. _“So that’s why Paul was having a coughing fit and had created the drawing of the blue-face child I saw the night I came over for burgers!”_ Gavin repressed a shiver; it all made sense, now…

“This is from a _real_ doctor’s office,” Raoul spat, as if somehow grasping onto Gavin’s mild doubts floating through his mind. “He really is s-sick, and that woman…” his eyes clenched shut tightly, and he held up the document to his own forehead while gripping strands of his wavy blonde hair between twitching, trembling fingers. “Th-that witch!” he cried out in anguish as he threw his head back and stifled cries of pain and turmoil that had threatened to spill out of him.

Nines looked down remorsefully, “What did she do?”

“She promised sh-she would help Paul get the surgery!” Raoul let out a strained laugh, “we-we don’t have much money, and the surgeons at the hospital told me that it’ll take a few months just for Paul to be accepted on the list to have the procedure done!!”

Gavin felt tears flowing down his cheeks, and he brushed them off as he sniffled. Now that all the proof had been lining up, he felt how miserable these gang members truly had to be; they certainly saw no issue with stooping so low as to attack a sick child, and a desperate father.

The document fluttered out of Raoul’s fingers, and it flew down to the floor of the bathroom as he used his shirt to wipe his eyes and nose. “Sh-she said that if I didn’t come all the way from Alabama to Detroit, they were g-going to take my son away and c-cut him up in-into a million pieces and mail him to my parents!!”

“Alright!” Nines barked out, clearly unable to take it anymore. “You…you’ve said enough, Mr. Spencer, we got it.”

Gavin sighed as he turned away and wiped the rest of his tears away. “I’m not saying what you did was right, or proper, Raoul,” he ground out in a croaky tone, “but you’re admitting to following me around, right?” he spun back around and glared at Raoul. The other man looked so small and so pathetic as he just shrugged and let out a worried cry while his eyebrows furrowed on his brow heavily.

He shook his head, as if unable to believe what he’d done, himself. “I…I’m sorry, Gavin” he threw back with trepidation looming in the air, “the night you told me about your h-husband, I just looked into him, tracked down where you lived, and I will admit that I went back and forth to that location by tracking your cellphone pings, and I set up a camera outside your apartment window so they knew when you’d be coming, but I never, _ever_ meant to hurt you!!”

“What’s the difference,” Gavin pointed out angrily, “they nearly shot me, Raoul! Don’t you get that?”

Nines huffed, “He doesn’t care about your life, Gavin,” he accused coldly while he turned to face his husband so he could console him in a way. “He only cares about himself, and his son.”

“I can’t blame him for that,” Gavin sighed, trying to be as non-judgmental as he could. “If I had a son or a daughter, you could bet your life I’d do the same thing for them, but I would never sell a friend out and let it go on for this long…” his eyes then searched Raoul’s, and the other man threw him a pleading look. He had been about to say something, but Gavin didn’t want to hear it. He crossed over and stood before Raoul, firmly gripping one of his shoulders.

He stared very seriously into his eyes. “Now, you tell us exactly everything you told Irina, and you tell us who else is involved with her!”

Nines quirked a brow while Raoul trembled. The frightened man stared between Nines and Gavin, and after some time, when he remained tight-lipped for too long, Nines grabbed him by the other shoulder. Leaning down so they were at eye-level, he grinned an icy grin as his words trickled down before Raoul like acid rain.

“If I were you,” he drawled dangerously, “I would start with all the information I have available…” he smiled in Gavin’s direction, then. “…Believe me, he can be a lot worse to deal with than I would be…would you really want to take that chance?”

Raoul only trembled furiously, eventually groaning as he nodded and led them out of the bathroom.

“Just…follow me…I’ll tell you everything.”

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Nines stood next to Gavin before the isolated cell Irina Zelg was kept in. She had around-the-clock monitoring, and she was currently lying down in her cot as she faced the ceiling with closed eyes.

“How can she sleep at a time like this?” Gavin inquired as he shook his head at the woman separated from them by a thick, heavy pane of glass.

Nines sighed, “She’s not asleep; she’s preserving her energy.”

Gavin snorted, “I thought as much…” he resisted the urge to tap the glass. “Can we talk to her?”

Nines smirked, and his reflection was clear in the glass. “We can, but I don’t know how responsive and helpful she’ll be.” Gavin knew it was more than likely true, but he believed that this time would turn out to be a different story.

“Nines,” he began with a small smile, “we have all the proof we need now, and if she wants to allow herself to be backed into a corner, that’s on her…” he chuckled as his eyes turned playful and bright, “…in fact, I’d say we let her; I want to see what kind of an excuse she can come up with…”

As Gavin unlocked Irina’s cell door, Nines whispered, “Be careful with the serpent, Gavin…”

He tossed his husband a small smile as he saw the cell door closing behind himself, and then Nines took a few steps back, though he nodded at Gavin, letting him know he was clearly keeping an eye out for him. Gavin flashed him a thumbs-up, and then stood at a small desk in the left-hand corner of the cell. Irina hadn’t moved; not even when Gavin cleared his throat. She seemed like she was in her own realm, and she didn’t care what Gavin was doing. She didn’t even stir or move a muscle when he kicked a foot lightly at the desk by the wall.

He’d been testing her for any sort of a reaction, but the woman was stone cold. Fine. He liked a challenge.

Staring over at Nines again, Gavin gave a small smile. He was pretty confident now that he had his ducks lined in a row, and he really was anticipating seeing how Irina was going to squirm her way out of this one.

Pulling the single little stool out from the table, Gavin sat down on it for a moment, simply staring at Irina. She wasn’t moving for a long time, and Gavin really assumed she had been asleep, but then she growled as she pressed a hand on her bangs and frowned.

“Turn off the lights, I have a headache!” she almost screamed at him as if he were a slave following her orders.

Gavin raised a brow at her ‘request’. “Talk to me first, and I’ll see what I can do for you, Irina.”

She huffed, and then swore at him, “Engasgue-se, animal!”

“Swearing at me won’t help, Irina…” he scoffed, “…or should I call you ‘ _Lady Irina_ ’?”

Like a zombie rising up from the cold grounds that were her grave, Irina shot up. She swung her legs over the side of her cot, but she hooked her fingers into the edge of the bed as she snarled at Gavin like a rabid wolf. “So,” she rasped, “you found my little rat, huh?”

Gavin smiled, “Raoul Spencer was easy to break through; perhaps next time, you should invest more energy into selecting an ‘inside man’ who won’t talk easily.”

Taking it offensively, Irina kicked at a leg of the table, causing Nines to take a few steps closer to the glass door, obviously concerned for Gavin’s safety if the woman was going to unleash an attack. Gavin sensed his presence and worries, and he held up a hand to try and reassure Nines that he had it all under control. Nines nodded at him and moved back once again.

Irina snickered maliciously as she flipped her long hair over her shoulders and clasped her hands together, simply sitting on the edge of the cot as she stared at the floor. She giggled a few times, and she let out a small sigh as she took in Gavin’s form sitting on the stool. When she’d looked at him longer than she’d have liked, she snorted as she shook her head at him.

“Such a weak man,” she hissed coldly, “how does it feel to be betrayed by someone you once knew? Hmm?” not waiting for a response from him, she brushed her hands over her tight black jeans, “better yet, how does it make you feel knowing you’ve bullied a man with an ailing child into giving you what you want?” she giggled cruelly, kicking her feet up and stretching them before she stood and leaned against the table.

Gavin smiled wryly at her before he simply stared down at his fingernails. “I could ask you the same thing, Lady Irina,” he snorted as his eyes widened a little, “it seems that you’re rather hypocritical when you’ve used the exact same measures and tactics into tricking Mr. Spencer to track me down and spy on me, no?”

“Would you stop mumbling about and make your point…if you have one?” she laughed again while brushing her hair back with her hands anytime it slipped and fell over her broad shoulders.

_“Done deal, Lady Irina…”_

Gavin nodded. “Very well,” he withdrew Raoul’s phone from his pocket, though he didn’t rush to show it to Irina quite yet. “Just remember,” he laughed, “you asked for this yourself.”

She turned her nose up at him, already dismissing his words. “Whatever you think you can do to me in the name of torture will only be child’s play in comparison to what I’ll have done to you once I’m free!”

He shrugged her threats off as he went through Raoul’s phone, and then slammed it down face-up, turning it so that the screen was facing her. He pointed at an image he had opened up, and he watched with glee as her face grew deathly pale and sickly in mere seconds.

“You know this man, don’t you?” he spat, tapping at the screen with the tip of his index finger. On the screen was an image of a man almost six feet tall. It appeared as though he was roughly the same age as Lady Irina. He was wearing black pants, black dress shoes, a white dress shirt with shiny buttons, and it was slightly unbuttoned to reveal tanned skin and dark chest hairs. He had a thick neck, was well-built in terms of his muscles, though he was more on the lean side as opposed to bulky and beefy. He had short black hair that was slightly wavy in the lower back, dark eyebrows, and a very cold, deadly look in his dark brown eyes. He had no facial hair, and he looked clean and proper. He was wearing a golden wedding band on his finger, too…

Irina stared down at her ring finger and whimpered as she touched a similar-looking wedding band there, too.

Gavin smiled even wider, “Who is this man, Irina?”

She whispered softly, “I’ll kill you myself, with my own hands...I swear I will…”

“You don’t sound so confident, Irina,” Gavin prodded her as he grinned triumphantly, “and you’re in no position to be making empty threats, mind you.”

Her hands slammed down on the table, the phone resting between them. “I SWEAR BY GOD, I’LL DESTROY YOU, YOU LOUSY WEASEL OF A DETECTIVE!!!”

Rather than getting into a screaming match with the irate and livid woman, Gavin chuckled as he stared down at the photo of the man once more. “I know exactly who this is, Irina,” he challenged as he looked up at her, “this is your husband, isn’t it?”

She breathed almost violently as her chest moved in and out. “You…you…you can’t!!!”

“Tell me his name, Irina,” Gavin hissed, “I know he is the leader of Ouroboros, so why don’t you just have some tact and decency, and just tell me what your husband’s called.”

When she refused to answer him, he sighed. “It’s like you don’t even care at all about what happens to him, Irina…” he toyed with his words, letting the emotions of guilt weigh in while he dragged out the psychological mind game. “…Do you even love your husband, Irina?”

“What do you know about love?” she spat back as she glared up at him beneath her bangs.

Gavin pointed at himself, “I’m not the one on the other side of this table, Irina, so you worry about your husband, and I shall worry about mine…”

Knowing she had no other choice, tears brimmed her eyes as they grew pink and moist. She sniffled, wiping her nose and eyes with a hand, turning away from Gavin as she breathed out weakly into the air, “Il Tėvas.”

Gavin frowned, “What?”

“Il Tėvas,” she repeated again with a growl in the back of her throat, “he is half Italian, half Lithuanian, my husband…”

Gavin nodded as he pocketed the phone again. “I appreciate your cooperation, Irina,” he rose, pushing the stool into the table, and he turned on his heels to make his way back outside her cell.

Bounding after him with worry evident in her eyes, she cried out, “What’re you going to do to him??? Answer me now!”

When Gavin refused to provide her with an answer, she shrieked, and before she could leap at him in order to attack him, the cell door opened, and Gavin slid out. The door slammed back in Irina’s face, and her forehead smashed into the glass when she was unable to stop herself in time. She beat her fists into the glass, pounding repeatedly as she angrily screamed at Gavin until she was red in the face.

“YOU FUCKING MONSTER! I’LL KILL YOU!! TELL ME WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN, RIGHT NOW!! I DEMAND AN ANSWER!!”

Gavin ignored her as he walked over to Nines. His husband stared expectantly at him; head tilted curiously while Irina banged on the glass repeatedly like a demon trying to come out of the tenth level of hell.

Nines pointed at her, “She’s not lying; ‘Il’ is Italian for ‘The’, and ‘Tėvas’ is indeed Lithuanian for ‘Father’.”

Gavin squinted down at the floor in confusion, “The Father??? He is called ‘The Father’??”

Nines hummed, “I wouldn’t mind the name for now, Gavin—”

“I WANT TO GO BACK TO OUR HOMELAND, I WISH HE COULD’VE TAKEN ME WITH HIM, THE SON OF A WHORE LEFT ME BACK THERE IN THAT BUILDING! THE SON OF A WHORE!!”

They both regarded Irina with caution and curiosity; Nines’ LED light was red, and Gavin scowled at her. As she screamed on, his facial expression grew concerned, and it all slowly clicked. They needed a slip-up all along, and now, the emotional woman had given them the perfect one.

“SHIT!”

He sped over to the glass door while Nines tore after him, and he stood right before Irina as he knocked on the glass door of her cell.

“Irina! Irina!” he cried while she screamed and kicked at the table and stool wildly. “IRINA! LISTEN TO ME!” he screamed loudly enough for her to stop, and she hissed angrily at him.

“WHERE IS HE GOING?! TELL ME RIGHT NOW WHERE YOUR HUSBAND IS GOING!!!”

Approaching the glass barrier steadily, Irina kicked at it once as she screamed into Gavin’s face angrily, “HE’S GOING BACK TO ITALY, AND HE’S LEAVING WITHOUT ME!!” she realized her own plight, then, and she let out horrible wails as she fell back down to her cot, then crashed to the floor while she violently pounded the walls with fists until a few female officers heard the commotion, and came running towards the cell door.

As they pushed past Gavin and Nines, they opened the cell door hurriedly, trying to get Irina off the floor out of a worry that she would harm herself. Now that the door was wide open, Gavin and Nines were able to hear her next words clear as a bell.

“HE’S LEAVING IN JUST THREE DAYS, THAT SON OF A PROSTITUTE IS LEAVING ME BEHIND IN THREE DAYS, AND IT IS AS IF I NEVER EXISTED OR MEANT ANYTHING TO HIM!!!”

Nines stared wide-eyed. “Well,” he stiffened before nodding over at her, “she certainly answered the only question I had for her…”

That may have been so, but Gavin had plenty more of his own to worry about for now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fina-fucking-lly, we find out who the damn leader is ;)  
> Also, I couldn't help but feel sorry for Raoul and his son :( Just a bit, anyway.


	43. Expectations Everlasting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We learn more about 'The Father', and Gavin has a LOT of surprises coming to him! 😱👀😵

Nines slid a fresh glass of cold water over towards Gavin as they sat before Captain Fowler’s desk. Their superior hadn’t stopped pacing about, playing with his tie nervously, and fidgeting neurotically around his office space since they’d arrived and informed him about what Irina had revealed to them. The anxiety had been so contagious that it even passed along and moved to affect Gavin and Nines, and they sat in silence side-by-side while Captain Fowler stomped around and stared around in a display of anxiety and fear.

After some time, he buckled down and fell into his chair, and he swallowed thickly as he readjusted his tie.

“So,” he said as he worked it off his neck eventually, “the good news is that we have found a ‘leader’ for this God-forsaken gang after all, but the bad news…” he sat up in his chair as he violently flung his tie at a random wall behind Nines’ head, “…the god damn bad news is that he’s slipping away?!?!” Fowler slammed his hands down on the desk and shook his head. He was obviously less than chuffed at the prospect of the gang’s leader getting away, but so were Nines and Gavin…and yet…they hadn’t said much of anything since Fowler started yelling.

Noticing this somehow pissed Captain Fowler off even more. “How can you two just sit here before me and tell me that ‘Il Tėvas’—or whatever the hell he’s called-is just up and leaving???” he held out his hands in front of himself while gaping like a fish out of water, “how do we even know what Irina said is true?!”

Nines sighed, “Because the leader was likely one of the two possible male suspects Gavin saw fleeing the warehouse during the bust, Sir.”

“I don’t care what Gavin saw!” Fowler interrupted explosively, “the fact is that he could be _anywhere_ in Detroit-or North America-within a few feet of a fucking airport to go back to Italy, and you useless maggots are just sitting here in my office and you’re telling me you have _no_ idea where he is??”

Gavin decided to interrupt, before Fowler channeled all his rage uselessly on Nines. “Sir,” he began with respect in his voice, hoping it would calm Fowler down a little, “Irina wouldn’t tell us more than that, and when we tried pressing her for more information, she just shut down and kept crying in Portuguese. She is highly emotional right now,” he explained logically and rationally, “so there’s not a lot we can get out of her right now when she’s in this state.”

Fowler waved a hand dismissively in the air. “Oh cry me a fucking river, Reed,” he snapped viciously, “like I’m supposed to give half a shit about what some gangster’s wife is sobbing about!”

Gavin shook his head, “No, Sir, that’s not what I was saying; I just meant that she won’t talk, and I think the best thing we can do is act completely neutral and back off her so she is more likely to think we’ve hit a dead-end on the case.”

Fowler’s eyebrows clenched tightly, and he suddenly appeared to be constipated. Gavin would’ve laughed at it, but it wasn’t the time or the place for that. He scowled back at his superior while he tried brushing off the previous insults as Fowler more than likely had fresh ones brewing in his mind.

He sat up and snorted pathetically at Gavin for voicing his opinions the way he had. “That’s not a smart idea, Reed,” Fowler spat, and then he looked at Nines coldly. Placing a hand over his chin, he crossed a leg over his kneecap and stared at Nines while deep in thought.

“And _you_ ,” he began while waving his hand before Nines, “do you agree with what Detective Reed is saying, Nines?”

Nines clasped his hands together and stared down. He closed his eyes and was silent for a moment, and it made Gavin worry that he wasn’t in agreement with his ideas. After a moment, Nines slowly nodded. “I think this is the best thing to do, Captain,” he added, “Irina has an intrepid and stubborn spirit; she won’t talk to us ever, and judging by how emotionally attached she is to her husband, it’s safe to assume that she will indeed try to reach out to him.”

Fowler rubbed his chin nervously as his eyes studied both Gavin and Nines back and forth for a while silently. He leaned back in his chair then, and it gave out a groan of protest against his strong, heavy weight settling back into it deeply. Obliquely, he seemed to be casting doubts down upon what Nines and Gavin believed they needed to do, but it appeared he had no other choice or suggestion to offer. He sighed in exhaustion, almost giving in. “So what do you think we should do, Nines?”

Nines gently held his hands up, though they were still clasped together. “What we need to do is assume her point of view; Irina needs to be left alone entirely. It’s a matter of pushing her into a guessing game,” he offered intelligently, “are we silent because we’ve caught onto her husband’s trail? Or are we silent because we’ve no other leads and have dropped the case? Only then will she panic, make an error, and she will more than likely try to connect with her husband in this case.”

Gavin nodded, “It’s the only chance we’ve got, Captain.”

Fowler grumbled under his breath but seemed to be in full agreement. “Yeah, I know she already blabbed a lot anyway…thank goodness for emotionally messed-up women, huh?” his joke fell flat between Nines and Gavin, and they merely cringed as they looked back at the door of the office, clearly wanting to leave.

Noticing where they were looking, Captain Fowler held up two hands. “Alright, alright,” he breathed out impatiently before clearing his throat gruffly, “go see what you can dig up on Il Tėvas for now, and if the witch happens to talk or make any other moves, you’ll be the first ones to know.”

Both Gavin and Nines nodded as they stood up. “Appreciate it, Sir.”

“Hmf!” Fowler snorted, “just get the hell outta here, before I change my mind and do things _my_ way!”

Nines was already out the door, but Gavin stopped in his tracks. He held onto the door handle as he stared over shyly at Captain Fowler, clearly wanting to say something, but also seemingly unsure of whether or not to proceed.

Fowler sighed again, “Just spit it out, Reed; I don’t have all damn day!”

Gavin smiled, “I just wanted to say, ‘thank you’, Sir, for believing and trusting in me…in us…”

Fowler looked nauseated. He grunted as he turned his nose up at Gavin. “Shut the damn door after yourself, Reed,” he snapped, though it wasn’t fully unfriendly or rude. It was just his way of saying that he understood, and that he was willing to always believe in Gavin and Nines.

Smiling happily, Gavin closed the door to Fowler’s office gently as he turned and made his way to join Nines at their work station.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin found Nines later that same day in the Archives and Evidence room in the lower levels of the DPD. Whenever Nines had visited the basement levels of the building, it’d often been for the purposes of studying, storing away, or collecting evidence samples. However, Gavin soon discovered that today, it meant something else entirely…Nines was trying to get away from everyone and everything else.

The RK900 was already quite private by nature, and when he’d sat himself down at a bench in the halls leading up to the Archives and Evidence storage rooms, Gavin waited patiently until he felt it was okay and safe enough to approach and sit down beside Nines gently. Neither of them was able to say anything to each other for a long time, but then Nines sat back as he folded his hands in his lap and simply stretched his long legs out before himself on the floor.

“Just three days…” he laughed, “…what kind of progress could we possibly make in just three days…” he looked so defeated, that it stung Gavin. He held onto Nines’ hands in his own as he offered him a comforting smile.

“Hey, Nines,” he gently breathed out, “it’s going to be okay, we got this!” he hoped he sounded more confident than he felt inside, but it seemed to momentarily soothe Nines. He smiled back at Gavin, even though his LED light was yellow and portrayed concern and worry.

He hummed as he looked down at the floor, “We haven’t learned much…”

“Yes we have,” Gavin interrupted, “haven’t you had any of your own theories as for why he’s called ‘The Father’?”

Nines frowned, “What do you mean?”

Stammering softly, Gavin lowered his voice. “I…I think it’s just more than a mere title, Nines,” he confessed as he thought about everything that had led him to believe what he was trying to get through to his husband. “He’s not called ‘The Father’ for nothing; he’s probably an overseer and a ‘sage’ of some sorts in the gang.”

Nines nodded slowly, “I had considered that as a literal definition, yes Gavin,” his eyes still held doubt and uncertainty, “but what if…” he shook his head, as if banishing that thought.

Gavin didn’t want to let it go, however. “No, not ‘what if’, Nines,” he urged gently while shaking his husband’s arm, “tell me…please?”

Nines gave in rather easily, and he leaned into Gavin. “What if our initial theories and ideas about Ouroboros have been completely incorrect?”

Frowning, Gavin tilted his head, as if that would help solve the issue and answer all the questions he had brewing in his mind. “What do you mean?”

“What if…” Nines stared around the halls, and then leaned in closer, “…what if it isn’t a gang at all, but what if it’s a cult?”

Gavin’s breath hitched in his throat, “A _religious_ cult?”

“Yes,” Nines answered swiftly and easily, “that would make sense for why he is called ‘The Father’, after all.”

“What have you gotten in terms of information about him?” Gavin inquired, knowing fully well that Nines had already gone the extra mile by gathering all the available data on ‘Il Tėvas’.

Nines held a hand out over Gavin’s thigh. “He was indeed born and raised in Lithuania, and his father-Alexi Vidas-used to be a part of the Polish army many years before he was born. I couldn’t gather a name on the man, though,” Nines stated irritably, “he’s worked hard for decades on erasing his past, and he has only strictly been known as ‘Il Tėvas’ for a long time.”

“Well,” Gavin interjected with a small snort, “if I were a crazy son of a bitch who wanted to organize and run a religious cult, I wouldn’t go around using my own given name either…”

“His father met a young Italian woman when he was out fishing and on a family vacation, and soon, he’d married Benedetta Esposito not long after she informed Alexi that she was pregnant with his child. They moved back to Lithuania and their son was educated in languages, arts, history, and music, but Alexi died of heart failure back in 1999, and Benedetta had to raise their son alone.” Nines’ voice quieted as he spoke on, and Gavin felt the halls turning so cold, suddenly.

“Benedetta however was a promiscuous woman, and in no time, she’d met a travelling magician and street performer known as Bony Clown…” he paused, allowing Gavin to roll his eyes before he continued, “…needless to say, when she was with him, Bony influenced her son heavily. He taught the boy about ‘black magic’ ‘black arts’, and he would often spend hours filling in his head with what he deemed as ‘sagacious’ notions regarding mystical powers. In no time, before the boy became an adolescent, he’d already tortured and murdered any small animal he could find, and he was soon sent away to a private boarding school when he terrified Benedetta for the last time…”

Gavin nodded, eagerly taking it all in, but when Nines paused and didn’t continue, he frowned as he shook his husband. “And? What else? Nines??”

The android sighed, “That’s all I was able to find, Gavin,” he stared at him blankly for a few moments, “these are more so rumors from small villages in Lithuania and Italy, and for all we know they could all be tales and legends; nothing more.”

“No!” Gavin cried out almost desperately, “no, Nines, I refuse to believe that!” he snapped as he sat back. “That is the most logical lead we’ve had, and it would explain why he is called ‘The Father’…he must think he’s some sort of High Priest, for all we know.”

Nines smiled, “We could work with that, my brilliant Detective…” there was a purr to his voice, and it made Gavin blush. He saw Nines leaning in closer to him, and he snickered.

“What do you want, Nines?”

Nines chuckled as his fingers gently caressed Gavin’s cheeks, “I want to just look at my own husband, is that such a crime, Gavin?”

Gavin gasped as he leaned forward. “Yes, it is!” he joked mildly, “because what if I don’t want to be mmmffpph!”

He’d been interrupted by Nines grabbing his face in his strong hands and pulling their bodies intimately together as his warm lips descended on Gavin’s. It was a good thing they were alone, for Gavin’s body reacted immediately to the touches and kisses Nines gave him. He felt himself hardening rapidly, but he still fought and pushed back against the tongue invading his mouth suddenly.

_“This isn’t the place to be doing this, Nines!!!”_

Gavin fought and struggled a little more, but then he found himself relaxing into the kiss as he returned it with equal amounts of passion and fervor. Nines licked at his lower lip, demanding further entrance required for a deeper kiss, and Gavin willingly obliged as he placed his hands over Nines’ firm shoulders. It took every last bit of self-control he had not to just place himself on Nines’ lap for a much deeper, and more intimate exchange, but he was content enough with curling and circling his tongue around the one currently making love to his own so sweetly. Gavin was in his own world of heaven, and his mind conjured up images and thoughts of Nines holding him close, disrobing him, moving him down onto their bed, and…

“OUCH!!” Gavin reeled back, holding a hand up to his burning, aching lip. He looked down at his fingers, and he saw a small drop of blood upon them. Frowning angrily, he felt his cheeks turning pink, and he turned away from Nines.

“The fuck, Nines?” he spat while trying to wipe off the rest of the blood, “you bit me!” It wasn’t an entirely unpleasant feeling, but Gavin didn’t want to admit to that just yet.

Nines hooked a finger beneath Gavin’s chin and forcefully tilted his head up to regard him. He pressed his forehead against the human’s, and he smirked as he hummed deeply while a single drop of blood hung on his lower lip. “Yes, I know,” his voice was so deep and heavy with adoration and warmth that it melted away Gavin’s anger. He wiped his injured lip again, sighing as he grabbed Nines’ face in his hands and cupped his cheeks.

“You senseless android,” he stated in a very loving and endearing tone, “as much as I am all for kinky shit, this _really_ isn’t a good time, Nines…”

Nines leaned away from him for a moment, eyes looking up towards the ceiling, and then when he stared back down at Gavin, a mischievous grin formed its way on his face. “I know what you mean, Gavin dear,” he grabbed Gavin’s neck gently, “but I currently feel it’s necessary for you especially to take time in the next two days to _really_ enjoy yourself…”

Before Gavin could question what that meant, Nines trapped his lips with his own once again, and he took his time to be gentle during this kiss. He cradled the back of Gavin’s head carefully and softly, his thumb caressing and rubbing the soft skin while his tongue stroked Gavin’s into a lull.

There were so many things Gavin wanted to ask Nines right then and there as his heart pounded wonderfully in his chest and his stomach fluttered as if it contained a few butterflies within. Any time Nines touched him, Gavin found himself melting away and yet being frozen at the same time; completely incapable and powerless to do or say anything…but he was willing to enjoy it as he felt his stress and worries ebbing away…

….at least for the time being, anyway.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin stared intently at Nines while the RK900 stood tall and was speaking with Dom and Kelly across the bullpen. It’d been a pleasantly silent late afternoon, thankfully, and Gavin was wrapping up his ‘search’ for ‘The Father’. As it turned out, Nines had been absolutely correct; there was no information to dig up on the man at all. Gavin had sent emails and left voice mail messages on the phones of police departments in Italy and Lithuania requesting their aid and assistance for the case, but no one had returned his inquiries yet. It was a late Friday afternoon, of course, but Gavin wasn’t expecting to hear dead silence. This was an important on-going case, and he was absolutely positive that ‘The Father’ had to have committed at least one serious criminal offense documented in the last five years. Whatever it was, he needed to relay the story to the Polizia whenever he could.

He’d been patiently waiting as he stared at his phone and laptop screen until he saw Nines standing by and chatting with the two androids on his team. He couldn’t hear what they were saying, but it seemed to be a genuinely friendly conversation as Kelly and Dom nodded at Nines and were perhaps joking around lightly. It amazed Gavin to see Nines smiling and getting along so well with the androids now. It was a complete 180 turn from how he’d once been almost a month ago, but when Nines turned over and smiled warmly at Gavin, those thoughts fled from the detective’s mind immediately.

How was it that Nines was able to ease his worries and fears with just one simple glance?? He had a natural talent and gift for it, so it seemed. Even now that he beamed proudly at Gavin, the other man felt his insides turn to mush, and he just smiled back with a dopey grin plastered onto his face. He knew he probably looked ridiculous, but he couldn’t help it…

BIIIIIIING!!!!!!! BIIIIIIIIIIIING!!!!!!!!

Gavin nearly had a heart attack when his personal phone started ringing and vibrating, and he cursed himself for not having the foresight to turn down the volume of his phone. Nines moved the other two androids further down the hall, likely giving Gavin some time to ‘work’, and as Gavin yanked his phone out of his pocket to shut it off for good, his eyes widened and his hands trembled when he saw who’d been calling and trying to reach out to him.

**PRIVATE NUMBER**

This meant it could have been anyone, and he felt compelled to answer it immediately. Gavin stared up ahead at the bullpen, and while everyone else was busy with their tasks, eager to wrap up for the day, he quickly got up to his feet and made his way past everyone else’s desks and work stations, and headed right into the men’s washrooms. He locked himself in a stall quickly, grateful that the bathroom was empty. Reluctantly, Gavin finally answered the demanding, impatient call.

He closed his eyes and tried steadying his shaky, panicked breathing. “D-detective Reed speaking,” he hated how scared he sounded, but there was little he could do about it, now.

Raoul Spencer almost immediately answered back, “Hey!”

Gavin sighed once he heard his voice. “How are you?” his voice bounced and echoed in the bathroom, and he knew for sure he was alone. So much the better, anyway. He’d been so excited-yet worried-that someone else would have called for the information about ‘The Father’, and Raoul had gone and disappointed him…as usual. Still, he felt he didn’t need to be rude to the man, but he wasn’t going to be chummy with him at all. Not ever.

“Sorry if I bothered you at work,” Raoul stated apologetically, “I got a new phone and everything, and I’m now in some protective guard and witness protection program thing.”

Gavin played with the lock of the bathroom stall door. “Well, yeah,” he laughed dryly, “that’s bound to happen in your situation, I guess…”

Raoul coughed and then sniffled. If Gavin had to wager, things were too awkward for him now, and he wasn’t sure whether Raoul was still angry at them both for barging in his home the way they had…

“How’s Paul?” he tried softly, hoping that it would take away from how embarrassed he suddenly felt.

Raoul cleared his throat as he shifted about, as if almost looking around to check for his boy’s whereabouts. “He’s fine, Gavin, th-thanks for asking…”

“Don’t mention it,” Gavin whispered, looking around the stall he’d locked himself in. He came to the conclusion that this was beyond crazy. Why was he locking himself in a bathroom stall and whispering with his ex-bully as if they were plotting something??

He really needed to end the conversation; that would help him feel a lot better, perhaps. Searching and fumbling around in his mind awkwardly for the perfect ‘exit’, Gavin inhaled sharply, and Raoul heard it quickly.

Interrupting Gavin’s train of thought, he pressed out, “I’m so sorry for endangering your life, Gavin! Please, if you can, find it in yourself to try and forgive me, even though I know I don’t deserve it!” His tone was sincere and remorseful to the point where Gavin wasn’t too angry with him as he once had been. He wasn’t one to hold a grudge forever, and whenever children came into the picture, he was willing to even sacrifice his own life for them if it came down to it.

He toyed with the bolts and screws in the side of the stall door. After playing with it for too long, Gavin noticed Raoul was waiting for him to say something. Why did he have to say something, though???

Grumbling under his breath, he eventually wheezed out, “It’s fine, Raoul,” he snickered gently, trying to put himself in good spirits, “if it hadn’t been for your kid, I’d probably come after you myself you know…”

Raoul laughed for a moment, but it seemed a bit forced and disingenuous. He quieted down after a moment, and it seemed as if he had something serious or important weighing on his shoulders and in his mind.

“Gavin,” he started off small and meekly, almost as if he were a little lost child, “I really didn’t mean for any of these things to happen you know…one minute, I was trying to find a place to live after my ex dumped me, and then the next, I was approached by Lady Irina, and she offered me a great sum of money if I kept watch over you…please know that I didn’t want to do any of these on my own! I hardly even remembered you much from school!”

“Shhh, shhh, Raoul,” he whispered, just barely over his own breath, “it’s okay, please calm down!” He was worried about someone else walking into the bathroom and hearing his conversation, but luck was on his side, still.

Raoul calmed down for a moment, and something rustled as he shifted and then started sniffling. Gavin truly hoped he wasn’t crying…

“You…” Raoul sniffled again, “…you’ve now idea how relieved I am to hear you understand me and listening to me, Gavin,” he then quickened the pace of his speech as his confidence boosted. “If you understand me, it really helps,” he sighed, as if daydreaming now that his wishes had all come true. “I didn’t mean to hurt you, Gavin,” he began, and then he almost choked on the next few words, “and I really didn’t mean to fall in love with you, but I have!”

This was when Gavin was certain his ears and mind had been likely imagining or hearing things. There was just no way that any of this was really happening. Sure, he could handle an ex-bully/classmate swinging back into his life because a creepy gang member threatened him to do so, else she would harm his child, but as for his ex-bully falling in love with him as he got to know him and stalk him??

Nah…it couldn’t be…

Gavin laughed as he tapped the walls of the stall. “Raoul, hehe,” he shook his head, “I think you’re confused and likely just traumatized after everything you just went through!”

“No, Gavin,” Raoul shot back quickly, “I know how I feel, and I _am_ in love with _you_.”

He stammered out, “H-how???”

“Look,” Raoul explained gently, “I was just told to keep close to you and always watch you, but as we got closer, I really realized we had a lot more in common than I thought, and before I knew it, I was just drawn to you, Gavin!”

Again, he sounded quite sincere and confident, so much that his voice cracked and sounded raw and hoarse. He really did seem to be genuine, and Gavin felt pained for the situation he was trapped in. This had been quite unexpected, and he didn’t know what to say as he stood there in the men’s washroom in the DPD hearing the most random and most bizarre love confession of his entire life.

“I know this sounds crazy,” Raoul added in, “but my feelings are real, Gavin, and I know your marriage is not real!”

Something inside Gavin was threatening to snap. It was almost like the feeling of a rubber band being yanked and toyed with by a child simply testing how far it could bend back before it flung forward into the air…and it was only a matter of time when it hurt the child, in fact.

Gavin tensed up as he snorted at Raoul’s statement, “You don’t know anything—”

“Lady Irina even figured it out, Gavin!” Raoul interrupted hurriedly, “and I heard a few officers talking about it when they moved Paul and I to our new location, so please…” his breath hitched in his throat, and it sent the wrong kind of shivers down Gavin’s spine.

“…Please,” Raoul begged, “if you’re going to be with a guy, Gavin, won’t you be with me? Won’t you give me a chance?” he asked sweetly, sighing sadly, “I can treat you right, and I swear I will do right by you for as long as I am able to, Gavin…”

Shaking his head, Gavin closed his eyes as he spun around in a tiny circle. He didn’t know how to say it without hurting Raoul, but he had no choice. His mind was made up, as far as he was concerned, and while Raoul had many good qualities about himself, Gavin knew where his true heart lay.

Resting a hand on his forehead, he massaged it as he ground out, “No, Raoul, I’m sorry…I can’t accept you.”

“What?! Why?!?”

Gavin looked sadly down at the floor when he was ready to open his eyes once more. “Because I love my husband dearly, and that’s not going to change for me.”

Raoul scoffed, “Your _husband_??”

“Yes!” Gavin almost screamed out, “my husband Nines! Look Raoul,” he explained gently, not wanting things to end off on such a sour note, “I really am serious about Nines, and I want him for life, okay? It’s nothing against you; you’re a great guy, but I love my husband, Raoul, and it’s really that simple.”

He’d apparently made the point loud and clear, and Raoul let out a sad, strained sigh. “So, you want to make your ‘marriage’ work?”

“Absolutely.”

“…Aright, Gavin,” he almost spoke out in a half-cry-half-whisper, “I respect that because of my feelings for you, but if you ever change your mind, I’ll be here, okay?”

Gavin blushed, “I won’t—”

“Just please…” Raoul interrupted, clearing his throat and sniffling again, “…just give me a break, Gavin,” he chuckled, though it was angry sounding, “…you just rejected a guy who would do anything for you here, and my heart is aching and bleeding all over the fucking place.”

Gavin sighed weakly, “Fine. I’m sorry though, okay?”

“It’s fine.”

Not wanting to respond with more cold, clipped answers, Gavin said, “I have to go now, Raoul, but if you want, we can maybe talk later.” The way he said it didn’t leave room for interpretation at all, and Raoul seemed to catch on really quickly.

He grunted, “Fine, Gavin.”

“Bye.”

“Later.”

When Gavin ended the conversation, he felt relief wash over him. He slumped forward and unlocked the stall door. As he moved up towards the mirrors hanging above the sinks, Gavin realized that some of what Raoul had said was indeed unfortunately true…

_“Nines is only my husband by name…we never had a proper ceremony…”_

It had been all for show, and that bothered Gavin.

He washed his face and hands, taking his time to collect himself as he slowly looked up at his reflection in the mirror. Suddenly, a thought hit him like a rocket.

Smiling at his own reflection, Gavin had a wonderful idea, and he knew exactly how to solve the issue of his marriage to Nines being fake…

He was going to ask Nines to marry him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOLY !!! Gavin's gonna propose!!!! All in all, I'd have rejected Raoul for Nines ANY darn day!! Good choice, Gavin!! 🌸🌸🌸🌺🙏✨🎉
> 
> P.S., Nines biting Gavin was sexy in its own right O_o


	44. Bright Minds Think Alike

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Why am I posting this early?  
> Because of my READERS! That's right!! I have to thank each and every one of you for lending me your time, energy, and emotional investment into this story. Some of you I have chatted and spoken with, and others I haven't, but still, I want everyone to know that I am thinking of them and I truly am very grateful for ALL of you.  
> I'd be nothing without my lovely readers, and thank you all for your wonderful support and kindness!!
> 
> My gift to you: An early, new chappie!  
> Enjoy! 🌺🌺💞

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song Connor sings is 'Butterfly' by Smile.dk  
> Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B_qwUS8Uqjg
> 
> It's actually a VERY catchy song ;)

“I’ve been searching for a man, all across Japan, just to find, to find my samurai!” Connor swayed to the beat of the song he was currently listening to while he borrowed Hank’s headphones and iPhone. It wasn’t too long until everyone had to go home for that Friday night, and instead of clearing up his work station, Connor was drowning himself in the sounds of the sweet, upbeat music.

He didn’t see Gavin approaching him, and Gavin first waved at him to try and get his attention. When that didn’t work, Gavin pulled up a chair to sit beside the music-loving android.

Connor merely continued singing as he closed his eyes and bopped his head in time with the music. “Someone who is strong, but still a little shy! Yes, I need, I need my samurai!!”

Gavin grabbed one of the headphones, then.

Connor screamed and whipped around, and he threw the headphones off in a jiffy. He visibly calmed down a lot when he saw Gavin, thankfully.

“Holy shit Gavin,” he laughed as he pressed a hand against his chest, “you almost blew my thirium pump out!”

Gavin placed an index finger over his lips, “Shh, Connor,” he leaned in close to the RK800, “I need to ask you a favor, buddy.”

Connor smiled as he flashed Gavin a thumbs-up, “You name it, and I’ll do it, Gavin!”

Gavin had almost been about to blurt out his whole plan before Connor, but then he saw Nines walking up to them sleekly. He stared down at them before frowning slightly at Connor and the items strewn about his desk. “What’s this?” he eventually hissed, “an early book club meeting?”

Connor rolled his eyes as he grabbed his headphones and shook them, “Music club, Nines!”

The music was still ongoing, and as Connor held the earbuds up to Nines, the RK900 listened to the upbeat music as it played. His eyes widened, and a look of sheer horror crossed over his face while Connor beamed at him with glee and pride shining in his eyes.

“Do you like it, Nines?” he asked with a grin that was overly confident.

Throwing the headphones down by Connor’s lap, Nines shuddered, “I’d rather be permanently shut down than subject myself to that ghastly torture ever again, Connor!”

Gavin giggled, and Connor merely shook his head at Nines. “I’ll take that as a ‘no’…”

“Indeed,” Nines hissed out, and then he stared down at Gavin with a tilted head. “We should head home.”

Gavin shrugged, not wanting to let go of his ‘plan’, but also not wanting to draw too much attention to himself. “I wanna hang out with Connor for a bit, Nines, if it’s okay?”

Staring over at Connor, Nines scowled. “Very well, Gavin,” he then clasped his hands firmly behind his back as he whispered at Connor, “don’t corrupt my husband, Connor.”

Saluting him, Connor smiled warmly, “Wouldn’t dream of it, Nines!”

Nines walked away, but he called out over his shoulder, “And reflect deeply on your selection in music, for Kamski’s sake!!”

Connor merely waved him off as he stuck out his tongue at him. When Nines had exited the building, Gavin gripped Connor’s chair tightly, but it was in a fit of excitement. “Connor,” he pressed on eagerly, “I want you to help me with my vows!”

Connor raised both his eyebrows in shock, “Vows? What vows, Gavin?”

Sometimes Gavin wanted to pinch Connor silly. He could be so smart and efficient in his work, but when it came to matters outside of it, he every now and then proved was a little dense.

Gavin sighed as he struggled to be patient with Connor. “Well,” he smirked, “I was hopin’ to rehearse them with you so that they’re perfect by the time I propose to Nines seriously…”

Connor nearly fell out of his chair. He spun it around and gripped Gavin tightly by the forearms as he leaned into his face and gasped as if he’d been dying for air, but then slowly smiled as his LED light blinked blue quickly for so many times. “Gavin!” he shrieked happily, “you’re serious??”

“As I’ll ever be!”

“You…” Connor gasped again, and then it turned into a joyous laugh, “…you want to marry Nines??”

Nodding, Gavin smiled down at the floor, “Yeah, we didn’t get a proper wedding the first time around, but this time, I want it to be just us, and not because Captain Fowler forced us to do it for work.”

Placing a hand on his thigh, Connor nodded slowly, “You actually _do_ love each other!”

“We do,” Gavin smiled, “I mean, I have yet to tell Nines about my true feelings, but I was hopin’ to make it all special when I got the vows down right, tell him I love him afterwards, and then give him a good ring…a ring!!” he groaned as his shoulders slumped forward a little, “…Connor! I can’t afford a fancy ring now!” he exclaimed sadly, and then shook his head, “what will I do?”

Peering intently into his eyes, Connor beamed with nothing short of pride. “You don’t have to go all fancy right now, Gavin,” he answered earnestly, “I think what Nines will appreciate the most is if you tell him everything right from your heart.” To further emphasize his point, the jovial RK800 placed a hand right over Gavin’s chest, directly where his heart was currently racing a mile due to his worry, fear, and elated feelings.

Gavin sighed, and then felt Connor’s hand right on his heart, and he smiled. “You’re right…I could always get the ring later, I suppose!”

“Of course!”

Gavin smiled even more confidently as he got up from his chair. “Come on, Connor!” he yanked the RK800 up to his feet, next, “I want to get all the time to practice this, before Nines catches on to my plan!”

Connor winked at him while he cleared his work station and got ready. “You bet!!”

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Nines wasn’t too upset with Gavin for not wanting to come home with him straight away after work; he himself already had special plans. Nines had decided upon it a few days ago, but due to the new leads and information blooming out of the case, he’d been unfortunately a little side-tracked. However, now that there was still no major rush to locate ‘The Father’, Nines figured while he ‘sat and waited’, he could do something special for Gavin…

He headed to a very high-end, fancy place on the other side of the city, and it took him at least almost half an hour to get there, but it would be worth it. He parked his car in the slightly empty parking lot, grateful and relieved not too many people were inside the shop. He needed to get back home before Gavin did, otherwise his plan would be ruined!

The little silver bell above the door chimed when he pushed the front door open, and he was immediately greeted by a round, chubby old lady with strawberry blonde hair that hung loosely down just past her jawline. She had warm, wise grey eyes, smooth, soft-looking skin, and she was dressed in a fancy off-white business suit.  

“Good evening sir!” she greeted warmly and cheerfully, “and what may I help you with today?”

Nines smiled, simply browsing and staring around the shop, first. It was beautiful; everything was so prim, proper, shiny, and in its rightful, special place. The lights were on and beaming brightly, and everything looked wonderful before his eyes. He hoped that it wouldn’t take too long for him to select the very thing he wanted.

Approaching the store owner confidently, he smiled even wider.

“I’d like to purchase an engagement ring, please…”

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Connor sat down with Gavin at the kitchen table in Hank’s house. Lieutenant Anderson still hadn’t arrived home from a meeting, but it suited Gavin just fine. Even if one other person had been there to help him write and memorize good vows and give him a final seal of approval, it would really help. He got comfortable as Connor leaned back in a chair and offered him some orange juice, which Gavin accepted gladly.

After downing it all, he went to grab some loose sheets of paper strewn halfway across the table, but then Connor’s hand reached out and snatched the paper away from him.

“Hey!” Gavin cried out angrily, “why did you do that for, Connor?”

The RK800 crossed his arms over his chest defiantly, “What did I tell you about doing things with Nines right from the heart? Hmm?”

Gavin nearly slapped himself in the face for forgetting. “Right,” he sighed as he sat back and just placed his hands in his lap comfortably. “Where should I start, Connor?”

Connor smiled, “I wouldn’t know; I’ve never declared my love for anyone before!”

Laughing playfully, Gavin rolled his eyes, “Just my luck to pick out someone who hasn’t got a single clue as to what he’s doin’!”

Connor giggled, “More like ‘just your intelligence’!”

They laughed for a short while, and Gavin slowly finished the rest of his orange juice. Scratching his head, he pushed bits of his loose hair strands back and away from his eyes as he thought about how to even start the vows. Sensing he was stuck; Connor gently placed a hand on his elbow.

“Gavin,” he began gently, “just try to maybe include the journey of your relationship and how it developed…maybe summarize that, and then profess your devotion and love for Nines to wrap that segment up nicely!”

Gavin’s eyes gleamed brightly. “Yeah! That’s a good idea, Connor!” he shimmied a little in his chair, getting comfortable as he thought about it for almost a minute, and then he looked at Connor.

“Nines, I…umm…” he frowned, “…Nines, since the moment I laid eyes on you, I…umm…” scowling at himself, he groaned as he closed his eyes and shook his head. “I can’t do this, Connor! It’s not working!”

“Shhh,” Connor soothed, “just don’t even look at me if it’s not helping; look at something else or look at nothing. Maybe just imagine Nines is here in my place if that may help!”

Chewing on his lower lip for a moment, Gavin finally nodded as he mentally counted to three. When he was ready to continue and start over again, he closed his eyes once more, and imagined Nines sitting right before himself rather than Connor instead. Next, he envisioned a more ‘proper’ and appropriate setting and place for the proposal. They would be somewhere on the beach in the late evening, sitting before each other on the yellow-white soft sand as the sun set with its orange-yellow rays just floating and hovering above the horizon while the shores and waves bounced and hit their toes whenever they stretched their feet to dip them into the water.

Their reflections would shine and glimmer brightly back at them, and then taking a deep breath, Gavin would hold Nines’ hand in his own, stare down at their new wedding rings, and he would finally say everything he’d held deeply in his heart…

“Nines,” he began, and soon, warmth and love truly was growing after every word, “ever since I saw you, I really didn’t know how I felt about you. You were someone I admired-yet feared-due to your status and behavior at work. I didn’t want to get too close to you, but ever since we were thrown into this union, I slowly came to the realization that everything I had assumed about you was completely wrong…”

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Nines stared at the glass display case, his eyes settling on a silver ring that was engraved with bright green patterns that wove around it nicely. From afar, it gleamed and shined the brightest, and he knew immediately that was the ring Gavin would love, and it was going to look beautiful as it was displayed on his finger.

_“…I once thought you were a cold, brutally-unapproachable person, and I wanted nothing more than to stay away from you…but you proved me wrong, Nines. After time spent with you, I found out that you are one of the kindest, most sincere men in the world, and I have been so blessed and elated getting to know you in the last month we have been together…”_

He pointed at the ring he’d selected, “I really like this one…”

The store owner smiled at him once she too stared at the ring he’d chosen. “This is a very, _very_ special ring!” she tapped on the clean display case glass, “it was brought to us by a wonderful customer who wishes to remain anonymous, and he found it in an antique shop in Romania!”

_“…I think we both helped each other grow, but I know you brought out the best in me. You pushed me to do the best I could, even when I didn’t know that you were doing it for my own good. In one month, Nines, you’ve become my protector, my guardian, my best friend, my confidant, and my lover…”_

Nines smiled even wider, “Well, the man I am going to be giving this ring to is a very, _very_ special man in my life…”

The store owner sighed happily, “Please do tell me about him!!”

Nothing would give Nines greater pleasure, though truthfully, he didn’t know where to start. Gavin was just an enigmatic wonder wrapped in colorful beauties of the world he’d never known to even exist, but he chose to start with that.

Pacing around, he couldn’t help but keep the small smile on his face. “He’s one of the most admirable people I’ve ever known, and although I always admired him from afar, I knew it wouldn’t be too long before I would fall in love with him…”

Beaming at him, the store owner blushed while she listened on.

“Anything I threw at him in terms of tests and trials for his own benefit, he bore like no other, and he fought and struggled to come out successfully through them; his spirit is one of his best features, and then his eyes…” Nines smiled the widest of smiles as he thought of Gavin’s lovely eyes right then and there, “his eyes are truly magnificent; _he is_ magnificent!!”

And he knew Gavin deserved the best.

Nines looked at the ring, collecting every bit of wonderfully endearing thoughts about Gavin he could. This was difficult to do, seeing as Gavin had captured his interests in every possible way. He’d been so empathetic, especially whenever he was around Shelley. He had a lot of love to give and offer, and it seemed that anything he touched, he brought a special life and spirit to.  Gavin could handle and take anything Nines had thrown at him. When he’d tested his loyalty back in the bar by sending the android to flirt with him, he hadn’t been expecting Gavin to defend his honor with such vehemence and utmost loyalty displayed. That night had been when Nines knew he was falling in love with Gavin, but he’d waited until the moment was right before he truly wanted to confess…well, he hadn’t been expecting to do so under a rainy, stormy sky, but there were many things Gavin had changed about him in such a short amount of time; his self-control being one of them. Still, he didn’t mind being so impulsive when it came to Gavin…in fact, it was delicious.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

“…In the last month we’ve been together, you taught me so many new things, Nines,” Gavin continued with sincerity loud and clear in his voice as he clasped his hands together by the palms, “you taught me that I had to grow in my own ways, you taught me to be vigilant, you taught me how to respect myself, and you also taught me the most important life-lesson of them all; you taught me how to love…”

Connor smiled as he listened on intently.

“…it was with the help of your love that I was able to decide that I don’t ever wish to spend another day of my life without you by my side, Nines,” he said this as his cheeks flushed bright pink and he grinned in a dopey way.

“I love you with all my heart, mind, and soul, Nines, and I ask of you to be my wonderful husband, and I ask of you to dedicate yourself fully to me so I can cherish you and take care of you the way you deserve to be for as long as we are together.”

He finished this off with a huge smile, and his heart had been racing and thumping in his chest the entire time, but it was worth it. It was indeed worth sweating profusely and heavily, as if he’d been running for a long time, and it was worth it to finally feel how dry his mouth and tongue were. He helped himself to more orange juice as he smirked at Connor.

“So?” he asked as he set the glass down when his mouth was less dry, “what do you think?”

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

“I think it’s perfect,” Nines merrily announced as he stared at the ring the store owner showed him once she’d removed it from the glass display case and presented it before him. Yes, this was the one he was going to go with.

He offered her cash, and she gladly took it as she handled the ring carefully and wiped it clean before she placed it in a small, black box.

“Your intended sounds so charming!” she commented as she counted the cash happily and joyfully, which made Nines smile even more.

“Yes, he is,” Nines agreed, “and he deserves the utmost best in life.”

She hummed in response as her cheeks brightened and turned a lovely rose-colored shade. “And I know you can definitely provide that for him, after everything you told me!”

A part of Nines that was still knew to relationships wasn’t 100% sure if this was a true statement. Yes, he knew he loved and wanted to cherish Gavin for the rest of his life-without a doubt-but what if Gavin didn’t want to get married?? There was that portion that was still unknown, and Nines felt troubled. His thirium pump was in knots, and his expression was perplexed. The store owner noticed it as she wrapped the box around in a plastic bag carefully while she threw him a concerned glance.

She leaned forward a little over the counter, “Dear? Are you alright?”

Nodding slowly, Nines sighed, “I just hope he will love this…”

She waved him off, “Given what you told me about him so far, I think he will love you just as much as he will love your proposal as well as the ring! Don’t worry dear!!”

He smirked, “I can trust your word, then?”

Winking at him, she gently placed the bag in his hands. “Dear, take it from me; you don’t run a successful jewelry for nearly two full decades without having _some_ accuracy in your predictions about your customers and their relationships!!”

They threw their heads back and chuckled, and Nines felt better immediately.

“Just trust yourself more,” she advised softly, greeting a new customer with the wave of a hand, “don’t hold back on anything; just tell him how you feel directly from within, and he will be yours.”

He shook her hand gently in his own, wrapping it over the back of hers as he whispered, “Thank you for your help, I’ll do my best!”

She gave his hand a reassuring pat of her own. “You will be just fine. Best to you, dear, and here’s to a wonderfully bright future with the love of your life.”

Nines was smiling all the way back to his car, through the city, and towards his home. He really didn’t remember the last time he’d been so happy before…

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin left Connor and Hank’s street almost an hour after he’d practiced his vows a few more times. He’d been able to speak them fluently when he took a cab back to the mansion, and the entire time he was in the vehicle, he was smiling from ear-to-ear. Nines was going to adore listening to the vows, and Connor had been so thrilled and proud of Gavin, that he’d dedicated a few hundred dollars towards the ring Gavin wanted to buy for Nines.

“Consider it my early wedding gift to you both, Gavin,” the RK800’s gentle voice bounced around in his skull, and Gavin felt his heart floating high above the clouds and even the world. He didn’t know how to contain and conceal his excitement until he got home. He just wanted to tell everyone in sight that he was going to propose to the love of his life, and he wasn’t going to stop talking and thinking about it until he actually did it!

As the car turned into Bishop Street, Gavin already got up off his seat and paid the driver his fee. “Keep the change!” he chuckled happily, his fingers touching and grazing along the cash Connor had given him.

_“Here’s to a bright new future with Nines…”_

When they’d finally stopped before the mansion, Gavin frowned. He felt his heart fluttering back down to its rightful place within his rib cage, and he let out a pained groan.

Now all his plans were ruined!

Within the driveway of the mansion was parked a few police vehicles!

_“Who is it, now?!?”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOLY HECK!! NINES IS ALSO PROPOSINGGGGGG!!!!!!!!  
> I'm telling you; these two, their minds just connect!


	45. A Proposal and a Name

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> *WARNING!!!! Highly detailed smut/sex!!! Legit, I went all out for this one O_o I swear it's hot though*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A loooooong chapter, but we learn the gang leader's name, and we finally see who proposes!!! 🙏🌺🌺🎊🙌💍💎

Gavin wasted no time in running right inside the mansion. He kicked off his shoes, frowning when he saw many pairs of boots and muddy footprints already on the floors. A soft whirring sound soon accompanied him, and Gavin stared up to see Shelley floating down from the stairs. Loud laughter and voices rang out by Nines’ office, and Gavin recognized a few of them…

It was J.D., Marlon, Marshall, and he was pretty sure he heard Maria…what were they all doing here???

Shelley floated down by his side as she scanned the mess, they’d all created on the floors. She still had on the fake eyelash Tina had placed on her, but Gavin thought it suited her just fine. Her light turned red as she grew angry and irritable the more she looked at the dirty floor.

“Bastards. Didn’t. Even. Take. Their. Shoes. Off. Got. My. Work. Cut. Out. For. Me!”

Smiling at her, Gavin nodded as he empathized with her. “I know, girl,” he gently gave her head a small, comforting rub, “I’ll help you out here later, okay?”

“Kk. You. Do. You. Boo,” she stated warmly, “I’ll. Do. What. I. Can. Here.”

He nodded, “Deal!” He then hurried down the hall past the kitchen, and stopped abruptly when he turned left and faced the office. Nines had indeed had company over; it was his entire narcotics enforcement team!

……..

 _AND_ Kelly, Phil, Dom, and Joe!! What were they all doing here???

Stepping closer towards them, Gavin was relieved to see that everyone except Butch had been present. Maria and Gwen were chatting joyfully with Kelly, and the African American android named Joe was having a blast exchanging conversation with the African American cousins Marlon and Marshall. J.D. was listening to music as he sat next to Dom, and the blonde-haired android seemed to like it as he tapped his feet and fingers in time with the music.

Only Justin and Phil stood seriously around Nines, and the RK900 was staring intently at a small device he held in his hands…it appeared to be a small holographic video recording of sorts, and on it was the image of Lady Irina.

Gavin finally stepped inside to join them all, and everyone turned to stare at him. Gwen, Kelly, Maria, and J.D. ran forward as they hugged him and paraded around him excitedly.

“Buenos dias muchacha latas!” J.D. exclaimed excitedly, but before he could wrestle Gavin down by his side and mess up his hair, Nines stood up and gently pulled him away.

“J.D.,” he warned lightly, though he truly seemed exhausted, “please…”

Gavin looked around at everyone. They all seemed so ‘busy’-yet joyful…if he didn’t know any better, it seemed as if they had some good news to share…

Nines looked over at Justin, and then grabbed the video recording projection. “A few hours ago,” he explained with a half-smile on his face, “this was taken from Irina’s cell…”

“She called her husband!” Justin clarified, saving Nines the trouble of having to play the recording, which earned him a little scowl from his superior. “She was desperate, as we thought she would have been, and she called ‘Il Tėvas’ while crying, and we traced the call to Detroit Metro Airport Marriott!!”

Gavin’s jaw fell, “So Il Tėvas is staying at this hotel?”

Nines-as well as the rest of the team-nodded quickly. “Yes, and we were able to finally get his first name…” he lowered his voice, and everyone in the office dramatically quieted down, as if waiting for the big reveal.

“…His name is Nojus.”

Gavin snorted, “No last name?”

Nines shook his head, “If this is even his real name; he’s changed his identity many times, and it’s safe to say he’s a chameleon of sorts.”

Stepping up towards them, Justin held out a piece of paper; clearly his ‘notes’. “According to the research I gathered on the name, it originates from the Hebrew name ‘Noah’. In the Bible, Noah was the second progenitor of the human race!”

Gavin gasped, “That all makes sense!” he held out a hand as he explained his theories clearly for the group. “This man who calls himself ‘The Father’ believes that not only is he here to ‘save’ the human race; but he wants to oversee it and reshape it into his own version…he thinks he is a god…”

Nines nodded, “That’s the best psychological profile I can come up with myself, as it would fit the bill of a religious cult leader…not to mention a narcissistic, megalomaniac sociopath.”

“My god,” Gavin exclaimed, “this man is insane!” he frowned, then, “but what about Slo-Freeze?”

Nines tilted his head at him, and J.D. picked at one of his eyebrow rings as he hummed. “I believe that Slo-Freeze is actually a means to an end, but for what? I don’t know…” he held his head down sadly and sighed.

“We’re still learning new things,” Nines stated, “and it won’t be too long before we head to the hotel and make our arrest.”

Gavin growled, “We should go _now_ , instead of just sitting here!”

Marlon tapped a finger on Gavin’s shoulder, getting his attention. “We still don’t have enough man-power, nor do we have enough evidence from Lady Irina to do that,” he stated clearly, and his cousin nodded in confirmation.

“What?”

Nines turned to face Gavin. “Lady Irina is the key, Gavin,” his eyes twinkled as he delivered his plan, “she is already requesting to join us along the way for when we go to locate her husband; only she can draw him out, as high-strung emotionally as she is, but we can’t rush into this like we did with the last drug bust.”

Gavin sighed, “You’re right; we got lucky last time.”

It was the only foolproof plan they had, and Gavin was willing to go along with it in a precise manner. He stared at all members of the narcotics team, and then frowned, “What happened to Butch?” the question had been on his mind when he first came home, but he needed to ask it again now things were calmer.

Nines’ LED light turned red as he snarled, “J.D. informed me that Butch attacked you, Gavin,” he shook his head, slightly disappointed with his husband. “Why didn’t you ever tell me?”

Gavin stared angrily down at the floor, “I’d rather forget it, and plus, why should I let some homophobic bully control me and get to me?”

Gwen and Maria sighed. “That homophobic bully is off the team!” Maria spat, “we won’t tolerate any injustice, and you’re one of us now, Gavin!”

A few other members cheered, and Gavin blushed again. He hated being in the limelight! Still, he was grateful that these odd mercenaries seemed to be more accepting of him now.

“Moreover,” Nines interrupted, “he’s receiving harsh discipline and reprimanding from Captain Allen. He is thus suspended, and no longer welcome on our team.” Nines finished with a nod, and Gavin smiled as he whispered, “Thank you.”

J.D. slapped Gavin hard across the back, even though he’d meant for it to be playful and endearing. “Don’t worry Gavin!” he smirked, and then recoiled when Nines threw him an icy stare, no doubt for slapping Gavin as hard as he had.

Marshall and Marlon high-fived Gavin, already on their way out the office door. “Well, that should conclude the meeting,” Marlon snickered, and Marshall walked ahead of him as they both called out in harmony, “Later, Sir! Thanks for the update!”

Gwen and Maria were next, and they gave Gavin a small hug while Kelly waited behind them. Gwen popped a fresh bubblegum in her mouth, and then tossed one over to Maria.

Kelly inched her way over towards Gavin, smiling warmly at him. “I will be with you guys too, don’t worry!”

Gavin shook his head, “No, Kelly, it’s too dangerous,” he gathered her in his arms for a small hug while Justin, J.D., and Nines spoke with Dom, Phil, and Joe. After an exchange of soft words, Joe and Dom soon left, calling out that they would wait for Kelly in the car.

Gavin gently rubbed Kelly’s back in a move of comfort. “I’ll personally feel a lot better if you stayed behind in the precinct, just so I know you’re safe.”

Releasing Gavin, she sighed as she nodded while her LED light turned yellow. Gavin knew she wasn’t too thrilled about this, but he snuck a finger under her chin as he forced her to look at him. “Hey,” he whispered, “come on, we’re friends, right?”

She smiled and laughed, “Of course we are, Gavin!”

“And I want my friends to be safe, okay Kelly?”

“Promise you’ll do everything you can to come back safely?” she asked, her voice a little small and fearful.

Gavin raised his pinky up at her, and she frowned, a tad confused. “Pinky swear!” he smiled, and she caught on, giggling as she raised up her own pinky, and then Gavin showed her how to loop them tightly as they hugged one last time before J.D. said he would give them all a ride back to the precinct.

Pausing to wave at Gavin and Nines, J.D. called out to them, “Later, mate!!”

Whirring to stand next to Gavin, a paper towel was draped over Shelley’s head as she sang out, “Eat. Me! Don’t. Forget. To. Write!!”

Glaring down at her, Gavin scolded her sternly, “Shelley! Don’t insult the guests!!”

Thankfully, in the middle of the chaos of car doors opening and closing and engines firing up, no one heard her, and they all drove off into the late evening orange sun. Sighing in exhaustion, Gavin turned and eyed the muddy paper towel on the top of Shelley’s head. Pointing at it, he hissed irritably, “Whatever you have on your head, Shelley, get rid of it, now.”

She let out a small groan, but didn’t argue back as she hovered out of the hallway and far off somewhere.

Soon, the mansion was empty, and Nines and Gavin stood next to each other in silence. In their self-imposed silence, they both realized how eager they were to be alone…

They both closed the front door of the house, staring at each other as they retreated inside the hallway. Both their minds swam with worries of how they were going to reveal their intimate plans to one another…

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Moving away from the firmly shut door, Gavin barely managed to turn around before strong arms grabbed him almost desperately. He was spun around on his feet, and his back slammed against the front door of the house before warm lips enveloped his own. Gavin’s mind and thoughts went foggy and hazy, and he lost himself to the sensation of being deeply and thoroughly kissed by his husband.

Nines was practically pawing and clawing wildly at him; his lips rough, tongue overpowering and dominant, rendering the kiss biting, forceful, and quite potent. It made Gavin’s head swim with forgetfulness, delight, passion, warmth, and seduction. Truly, he nearly forgot what he’d wanted to finally ask Nines. He’d taken a long time to build up the courage, and now that he had the chance, Nines was insisting on making out…

“Mnnnoo stoop!!” Gavin cried out in a bit of a mumble before gently pushing his husband off his body, albeit with some reluctance. While Nines’ lips and tongue felt so damn irresistible and sweet, he knew he had to cut this short, otherwise, he’d never be able to get the words out.

They leapt apart from each other, Gavin panting for air to clear his lungs, and Nines looming over him with hands shaking and trembling.

…………..

_“Fuck it, I can’t.”_

Gavin made a break for it, running towards the grand staircase, making a beeline for his room. Nines didn’t give up on him, however; he merely chased after Gavin hurriedly. He had his own agenda in his mind, and he wasn’t going to lose it right now. God only knew when they would get the chance to be alone again; time was of the essence!

“Gavin, I have something to ask you!”

“Nines, I have to tell you something!”

They both froze when they were in Gavin’s bedroom, as they each had spoken out simultaneously. Nines didn’t even know when he’d followed Gavin upstairs, but it must’ve been in a desperate attempt at getting his attention. He had been interrupted and distracted when his team had been waiting for him in his driveway when he got home, and he grumpily gave them attention while counting down the seconds and minutes for Gavin to arrive home. He’d cleverly hidden away the ring within its box in one of his black peacoats, and when he tore up after Gavin, he snatched it out of his coat pocket and hid it behind his back.

They stood facing each other, now, and Shelley soon wandered in the room, with her fake eyelashes fluttering at them.

Nines groaned, “Shelley! Must you be here for this?!?”

She let out a slow ‘booooooooop!’ “Well. Excuse. The. Hell. Out. Of. Me. For. Giving. A. Shit.”

Gavin waved her away, “Shelley, please,” he looked down at her with remorse, trying not to explode. He was feeling so many emotions, and he was already quite upset that the narcotics team had invited themselves over. It’d seemed too long until they left, and he didn’t need Shelley interrupting too, now, however pure her reasons were.

“Shelley,” Gavin began softly, grabbing the bedroom door handle as he smiled at her, “I’ll talk to you in a bit, okay sweetie?”

Beeeeeeeeeeooooop! “Fine. I. Totes. Get. It. Sweetheart,” her light turned a warm green as she purred up at Gavin, “Continue. With. Your. Naked. Games. I’ll. Be. In. The. Kitchen. Staring. At. Walls.”

As she floated away and the door closed, Gavin turned around, completely mortified to look Nines in the eyes. He pointed in the direction Shelley had gone with a limp finger, “I seriously have no idea what she’s talking about…”

“Gavin,” Nines pressed on almost breathlessly, “please go on, I didn’t mean to interrupt you.”

Gavin shook his head, “No, it’s okay, Nines,” he scratched the back of his head, “I’ll listen to what you have to say first, because you seem to be in a hurry or something.”

Nines frowned, but then shook his head. He closed his eyes for a moment, fingers toying with the box as he took in a sharp breath and got down on one knee. Gavin threw him a completely perplexed look, and Nines whispered out, “I’m so sorry I’m not able to do this in a more romantic setting, Gavin, but I won’t be able to put my mind to rest tonight if I don’t say what I want to say…err, I mean, ask you! Yes, ask of you!”

Gavin’s chin quivered, “N-Nines?”

“I’m so sorry I did this at the last minute, I just didn’t think we would get a chance to speak like this,” Nines pressed out emotionally, “but I need you to know and completely understand that I love you most ardently, Gavin Reed, and I want you to spend the rest of your life with me…I’m asking you to marry me, Gavin…” he looked deeply into Gavin’s eyes, and the passionate RK900 could’ve sworn he saw what were the beginnings of tears forming in their blue depths.

He opened the box, then, and he offered the ring up to Gavin. “Will you marry me, Gavin Reed?” he’d asked it so pleasantly, but there was urgency in his voice as his breath hitched. “Will you please give me the gift of becoming my dearest husband from this day onward?”

Gavin’s eyes stared and stared at the ring until he held a hand against his mouth in shock. He already had a ring, but this ring??? This ring was _perfect_!! No, Nines was perfect! He was speechless for many long minutes, but Nines was patient as he smiled-albeit a little anxiously at him as he waited for his answer.

Gavin found himself nodding. “Yes!!! Yes Nines! Of course I will m-marry you!!” he broke out in small tears, unable to contain his joy. This was really happening, and he was so, so happy it had. Nines plucked the ring from the box, and gently took Gavin’s hand in his own. It was a complete day-and-night change in comparison to how he’d taken his hand during their ‘ceremony’ a month ago. He was so gentle as he worked the golden ring off Gavin’s finger, and now replaced it with the silver and green one.

Holding his hand up to his lips, Nines then turned Gavin’s hand around and bestowed a gentle kiss upon the back of it. He rose to his feet, and Gavin wrapped his arms around Nines as he held tightly onto him for many long minutes. He was sobbing, but they were tears of joy as he felt Nines kissing the top of his head lovingly.

Nines smiled to himself. This was the happiest day of his life, and he truly couldn’t believe the store owner had been right. He’d spoken from the heart, and he’d won Gavin. Gavin was now his, and he would remain his forever.

Pulling out of their embrace, Nines gently rubbed away Gavin’s tears from his face. “Now, what did you want to say to me?”

As if remembering it all like a bang on the head, Gavin suddenly frowned. It was a playful frown followed by an equally playful slap on Nines’ shoulder. “You ruined my proposal for marriage, Nines!” he hissed, flushing pink, and Nines gently kissed his cheek.

“You were thinking of asking me to marry you?” he purred his question as he smiled a completely satisfied smile.

Gavin grumbled, “Yeah…but it looks like you beat me to it…” he sighed, smiling fondly as he looked at the new ring on his finger. “Come to think of it, it’s not that bad of a surprise, really…”

Nines cupped his cheeks in his hands as he leaned in close. “You still want to tell me something,” he said as if it were a fact.

Gavin rolled his eyes, “You _have_ to know everything, don’t you?”

“Hmm, not everything…” Nines gently kissed his forehead, “…just 99% of things…”

Gavin wove their hands and fingers together as he shyly looked away. “I had my own vows and everything all prepared…” he snorted as he shook his head in minor disappointment.

Nines licked his cheek softly, “Tell me them…don’t deny me a single word or phrase, now…”

Gavin smiled as he nodded, “Very well, just don’t laugh or anything!”

Another little lick was delivered to his cheek, “I never would even dream of it…”

He sighed, closing his eyes as he reached down deep within his heart and conjured up the words as he backed them up with every bit of love he had for Nines. Holding their hands together, Gavin stared intently at Nines, even though it made him a little nervous.

“Nines,” he breathed his name as if it were his lifeline, “ever since I saw you, I really didn’t know how I felt about you. You were someone I admired-yet feared-due to your status and behavior at work. I didn’t want to get too close to you, but ever since we were thrown into this union, I slowly came to the realization that everything I had assumed about you was completely wrong…” he felt Nines clutching almost desperately onto his hand, and Gavin tightened his hold even more.

“…I once thought you were a cold, brutally-unapproachable person, and I wanted nothing more than to stay away from you…but you proved me wrong, Nines. After time spent with you, I found out that you are one of the kindest, most sincere men in the world, and I have been so blessed and elated getting to know you in the last month we have been together…”

Nines closed his eyes as he leaned their foreheads together, and Gavin continued, the words freely flowing from his heart. “…I think we both helped each other grow, but I know you brought out the best in me. You pushed me to do the best I could, even when I didn’t know that you were doing it for my own good. In one month, Nines, you’ve become my protector, my guardian, my best friend, my confidant, and my lover…”

Gavin studied how lovely Nines looked, and it wasn’t just his appearance he was drawn to; it was the energy he gave off as they were so close to each other. It almost seemed as if he had a heart, and it was beating…Gavin placed his hand right on his thirium pump regulator, and he sighed as he continued with his loving vows. “…In the last month we’ve been together, you taught me so many new things, Nines,” he looked at their intertwined fingers and smiled with pride and joy running through him.

“You taught me that I had to grow in my own ways, you taught me to be vigilant, you taught me how to respect myself, and you also taught me the most important life-lesson of them all; you taught me how to love…”

As soon as Nines heard that word uttered from Gavin’s mouth, he pressed a soft kiss to his lips. Gavin pulled away after a moment as he added in, “I love you, Nines.”

“I love you too, Gavin,” Nines growled out the sentence lustfully, and it wasn’t long after when Gavin was smothered by a deep kiss from his husband. Gavin returned the kiss for a moment, but then he gently pushed Nines away.

“But I’m not finished my vows!” he cried out in shock, only to have Nines’ warm tongue delve deeper inside his mouth, his fingers already moving to grip Gavin’s shirt as he pulled it up.

Nines licked deeply inside Gavin’s mouth, gently taking his shirt off and letting it fall to the floor. He simply stood back and smiled, studying Gavin’s naked upper body for a moment before he ran his fingers along the waistband of his pants.

“Nines…” Gavin breathed, already a hot, wet mess, and it made Nines smirk.

He leaned in close to Gavin’s ear. “Enough talking,” he growled, hooking his fingers into the waistband of the pants and attempting to tug them down Gavin’s hips slowly. “If you’re going to commit yourself to lunacy, I’m going to at least take full advantage.”

Before Gavin could ask what that implied, Nines assaulted his mouth with fresh, passionate kisses. The onslaught never ceased; it only grew more heated and intense. Nines slowly disrobed Gavin, taking his time as he wove his hands down Gavin’s chest, plucking and pinching at his nipples until they were sore, stiff, hardened nubs. Easing Gavin back down onto his bed, Nines pressed open-mouth kisses all over Gavin’s neck while his hands wove their way down his body. Leaving no place untouched, Nines traded kisses for touches while he slowly unbuttoned Gavin’s pants and pushed them down his thighs. He could tell Gavin was growing frustrated by how slowly he was taking things, and every time the shorter man tried yanking down Nines’ pants, Nines pushed his hands away or would bite down on his neck. Soon, Gavin gave it up, and he stretched himself out beneath Nines as he enjoyed the attention and love he was being given.

Nines was a most dutiful lover; he massaged Gavin’s muscles and bones while sucking on his left nipple, and his tongue moved in a mass of swirls and circles that nearly made Gavin explode in his underwear already. Nines was rubbing him gently over his underwear, and Gavin was growing harder and harder by the minute. He had no idea how much more of it he could take, especially when Nines was nibbling on his right nipple. He dug his fingers in his husband’s hair, lightly tugging it to tell him to ‘get on with it’ and stop the teasing.

It appeared Nines got the hint after another minute of biting and sucking along Gavin’s sides and abdomen, and he finally searched through Gavin’s night table drawers for the bottle of lubricant. When he fished it out, he loomed over Gavin, pushed both Gavin’s pants and underwear down, and then along with his own pants. Hurriedly, Gavin sucked on his neck while stripping off Nines’ boxers in one go. He was surprised he hadn’t torn them, but he pushed them off the bed as Nines popped open the lube jar. He hesitated for a moment, staring down at Gavin while the other man kissed his way along Nines’ chest and stomach. With slightly trembling hands, Nines coated his first two fingers liberally in the oil.

Gavin knew Nines was thinking about how gentle and loving he had to be for their first time, but he wanted Nines to completely lose himself just for one night and didn’t know how to prepare both himself and his husband for it. All Gavin could do was lavish Nines with loving and tender kisses as he slowly draped a leg up while wrapping the other around Nines. While Nines’ hand disappeared slowly between his open thighs, Gavin felt something extremely cold rubbing along the tip of his cock, and he gasped out in surprise. The sensation carried on to the inside of his right thigh, and it felt like a paint brush stroke moving up and down along a canvas. It was Nines’ fingers, and Gavin mewled in shock while also reeling in pleasure. He hadn’t expected this at all, and it felt so damn good! He was at a loss for words, so he did the only thing he knew; reaching up, Gavin circled his arms around Nines’ neck, and pulled him down for a heated kiss.

Nines returned his kiss with equal amounts of passion, and Gavin soon noticed Nines’ tongue was dipping in and out of his mouth at the same time his index finger was sliding in and out of his body. It was so graceful and gentle, that it made Gavin’s cock thicken and expand from its half hard state and stand proudly up against his abdomen when Nines’ cock brushed over it. A jolt over electricity ran through his entire body when the tips touched accidentally, making them groan and break out of their kiss. Nines sat up again, looking Gavin deeply in the eye as his finger resumed massaging and preparing Gavin slowly.

“Nines,” Gavin moaned, “you don’t have to be so g-gentle with me…”

Nines’ eyes slowly looked up and met his husband’s gaze. Feeling emboldened when he saw the raw look of lust Gavin was offering him, Nines then peered down and added a second finger carefully. He pumped and moved his fingers in slow, scissoring motions, and it made Gavin’s breath die down in his throat as he dug his fingers in Nines’ shoulders.

“Please…”

Nines captured his mouth with another deep kiss, swallowing Gavin’s protests for a moment before Gavin nipped his lower lip and broke away from his sensual mouth.

He gently rubbed a hand against Nines’ cheek while speaking to him softly and slowly as he took in mouthfuls of air. “I want you to just let go and be yourself just for tonight. Please, Nines…”

Nines looked down for a moment, considering it slowly as his LED light flashed yellow. “Are you sure that’s what you want, Gavin?”

Staring down at his husband’s naked body, Gavin smiled. Nines was magnificently built. He truly was a work of art, and Gavin couldn’t stop staring at his long legs, his well-built, bulky arms, his broad shoulders, his strong abdomen…he let out a sigh, nodding at Nines as he pulled his husband down for a short kiss.

Nines let the touch linger, but then he whispered against Gavin’s lips, “Alright,” came the deep rumble of a purr, “for you, Gavin, I’ll do anything.”

While Gavin felt his heart fluttering excitedly, Nines ran his hands quickly down Gavin’s chest, and slowly lowered his body onto him, covering Gavin in a delicious heat. The oil made their lower bodies slide against each other easily, and Nines moved and shifted his position, so their hips were aligned. Hard cocks met and rubbed together making both men groan. All thoughts of fears and tomorrow disappeared, as passion overtook them both. Nines chose again to kiss Gavin, and he sucked in Gavin’s lower lip and teased it with his teeth before plunging his tongue into his mouth. The slow probing of tongues increased in urgency as their oil slicked bodies slid over each other, and their cocks thrust together between their abdomens. Nines was relentless with his hips; he knew what he was doing, and while his hips rammed against Gavin’s, his fingers continuously buried themselves deeper and deeper inside Gavin, working him open slowly and gently.

If Gavin had thought having his cock in Nines’ mouth was the most erotic thing ever, this was something entirely different by comparison. The blow job had been urgent and desperate, but the slow building sensation that now gripped him took his breath away in its slow intimacy.

Nines pulled away from his mouth, buried his face beside his ear, and hissed in harsh breaths on each thrust; muttering something Gavin couldn’t make out over the nonsense words coming from his own mouth. Nines had indeed reduced him to a garbling mess. The sound of his husband’s deep voice in his ear, however, made Gavin shiver in anticipation and delight. He couldn’t believe that it had only taken him over a month to really notice that Nines did have a voice that made Gavin want him to talk in his ear like that forever.

Nines suddenly slowed his thrusting and sat up on his knees between Gavin’s open legs. Even his fingers had stopped moving, and Gavin almost screamed at the loss of contact and grabbed Nines by the arms, pulling him back down.

“Don’t stop now, baby,” he hissed, “not when I’m so close Nines, please don’t stop!” he muttered incoherently as he thrust up against him again, but Nines pulled away out of his grasp.

“Nines?” Gavin stuttered, gasping at thin air when Nines moved away.

“Shh Gavin, just relax.” Nines lifted up Gavin’s legs and pressed them into his chest. Unable to move in this position, Gavin could only watch as Nines let go of one of his legs, ran his fingers over his puckered entrance and applied more of the lube directly over both Gavin’s entrance, and over his own cock generously. A strange feeling shot through him as Gavin watched Nines coating his cock as best and as much as he could in the slippery substance; a tingling sensation that was not entirely unpleasant, but it passed quickly, as the exploring fingers soon continued caressing the sensitive flesh.

Gavin threw his head back onto a soft pillow. “Oh god!” he breathed out repeatedly as sparks of electricity ran up his spine anytime Nines rubbed his fingers and cock over his ass and thighs open before him. Another single finger slid past the tight ring of muscle and Gavin hissed at the sensation. Carefully, Nines slowly moved his fingers around inside him before bringing them almost all the way back out. When he pushed them back in, he bent them slightly in an upwards curling motion, brushing the spot Gavin had found occasionally when masturbating. Fingers moving that way were causing Gavin to grunt in pleasure as a jolt of electricity shot through him. Nines smirked triumphantly down at him, raising his eyebrows seductively before thrusting back in, curling his fingers more, and pressing that delicious spot harder. Teasing Gavin more, he started back with a single digit.

“Oh my…fuuuck!” Gavin gasped as many sensations overtook his body at once. It had never been this good when he touched himself, and he wanted more. His back arched, and his hips thrust down onto the intruding digit harder, encouraging Nines to go deeper and faster. Nines withdrew his finger in response, quickly replacing it with another one. Yet again, Gavin felt a slight burning sensation, but continued to push back; the burning was worth the pleasure that accompanied it. Two fingers were replaced with three after a few minutes of Gavin loudly begging Nines for more, but as a third finger was added his movements stilled; the burning turned to pain causing him to tense.

Noticing this, Nines stopped all movement, but he gently thrust against Gavin, still. “Relax, my love,” he whispered, “it will hurt, but not for long. I promise,” his voice was ragged and broken as he spoke.

Gavin was prepared for it. Nines gently removed all his fingers, gripped one of Gavin’s legs, and pushed him back over onto his front and chest. One arm slid under his waist, pulling him up onto his hands and knees for a moment. Leaning against Nines, Gavin watched the android’s free hand move over to pull and grab a small pillow, which Nines used to slide beneath Gavin’s hips. The gentleness of the touch sent shivers through Gavin when Nines handled him, and when his husband’s hands grazed by his ass, he eagerly pushed back against anything he could feel.

The new position was less painful now that Gavin’s hips were raised, but all thoughts and discomfort disappeared when the fingers pushed down onto his prostate suddenly. In this position, the pleasure from the touch was even more intense, and Gavin let out a loud grunt as sparks of electricity coursed through him. Nines spread his fingers inside him, stretching the muscles carefully before he began thrusting in and out of his body, touching that spot on every second or third thrust. Once Gavin was completely relaxed, he started pushing back against the hand, urging him for more. His forgotten about cock dripped onto the sheets and pillow beneath himself, but Gavin paid it no mind as he panted Nines’ name repeatedly.

“Nines…Nines...fuck…want...you…need you now,” Gavin sighed out in-between thrusts and pumps.

Finally, it appeared that even Nines couldn’t take much of it anymore. He withdrew his fingers and dipped them back into the jar of lubricant sitting beside them. Gavin turned his head down to look at Nines who was slowly stroking himself, covering his cock in the wet lubricant once again when the majority had dried off the first time. Seeing his husband touching himself the way he currently was, Gavin gasped at the sight. Nines stared up at him, and the look in his eyes was so intense with emotion that Gavin couldn’t even begin to describe it, but it made his stomach flip over as feelings of peace and belonging soared through him. Nines’ hand moved up and down his thick shaft, and Gavin watched as Nines cradled the small glass jar of lube in his hands as he made extra sure Gavin was wet and slick enough for him. The jar was opened quickly once again, and Nines dipped his fingers into it before he continued his firm caresses, never breaking his gaze from Gavin’s face. His hand caressed his own cock for a few more moments before it ceased, and then Gavin felt Nines inching up towards him, and he felt something larger, thicker, and definitely not a finger pressing against his hole.

Nines carefully moved forward on his knees slightly with one hand still on his cock and aligned himself up at Gavin’s entrance. His other arm wrapped around Gavin’ waist and pulled him up slightly. Burning blue eyes locked onto Gavin’s, as a hand slowly wrapped around his throbbing, needy cock at the same time as the cock at his entrance penetrated him. Only the head of Nines’ cock had breached the outer ring of muscle guarding his hole, but pain and pleasure rushed through Gavin in a confusing mix making him cry out, close his eyes and hold his breath.

“Gavin,” Nines growled, “you need to tell me to stop now if this is not...” he’d been cut off by Gavin pushing up against his cock working its way inside himself, making the tip slip inside him deeper as Nines’ eyes snapped shut. He was lost in a world of pleasure, and Gavin wrapped their hands together.

“I won’t break Nines,” he assured as he pushed back harder.

Nines hummed, bottoming out inside Gavin slowly. “Remember to breathe, my love,” he stated when he saw Gavin holding his breath and tensing up a little. “Push back against me when you are ready.” Nines spoke with difficultly, his voice quivering slightly either with emotion or because he was struggling to remain still. While Gavin wasn’t sure which it was, he was grateful that Nines wasn’t thrusting into him any further; his only movement a slow circular motion of his thumb as it caressed the engorged head on Gavin’s pulsating cock. Gavin breathed out and relaxed against the hot, intruding member and pushed back, as if testing it out. Nines gave him full control over the pace at which his cock entered him, and Gavin marveled at his husband’s self-control as he felt his body stretch to accommodate the hard length. The burning pain was intense, but he wanted this so much that he kept pushing back at a steady even pace until his ass cheeks pressed up against Nines’ abdomen.

With Nines’ cock now fully buried in him, Gavin let out a long, content breath, and remained still whilst trying to adjust to the incredible feeling of fullness in his lower body. It still hurt, but his heart was pounding from all the emotions running through him. He felt so complete and connected to Nines that he wanted to capture this moment forever. He turned his head up to peer over again at the man who in a way had been his ‘first’ real sexual experience with another man. Nines looked so beautiful. At that moment, he had his eyes closed and his brow furrowed in concentration. To see the normally angry, spiteful man lost in pleasure, whilst maintaining control as to not inflict any unnecessary pain made Gavin’s heart swell with an unidentified emotion. Nines’ eyes opened and locked on Gavin’s, as if hearing his thoughts. There was no hint of any negative emotion in the deep blue pools; they swam with such an intense level of warmth that Gavin thought he could actually feel it surround himself. Maintaining the eye contact, Nines withdrew from him halfway and slowly pushed back in, causing Gavin to hiss as the pain spiked.

Nines looked concerned. “Tell me to stop now if this is too painful for you, my love,” he whispered as he adjusted the pillow beneath Gavin’s hips while growling possessively, “I might not be able to stop later on, I’m afraid…”

“Please stop worrying, babe,” Gavin wiggled his ass over Nines’ cock slightly to encourage his husband to continue.

Although he felt a searing, throbbing pain, Gavin resisted the urge to buck his hips to elude the pain. Nines held him down by his waist, and Gavin reveled in the fact that Nines was completely buried in him, from base to tip. It seemed as if the heat of him would burn Gavin from within.

Nines grunted and let go of Gavin’s cock, which he had been slowly stroking the whole time. The powerful male grabbed his husband’s hips before withdrawing almost completely and thrusting back in slowly. Gavin felt himself stretch further as his muscles relaxed and the pain subsided a bit. Nines continued moving in and out him slowly, until the sensation of being filled became pleasant and the pain was almost gone. Nines leaned forward and sucked on a small spot between Gavin’s neck and his shoulders. He eventually curled a hand around Gavin’s cock again and began stroking it more firmly this time. Gavin could only groan as he lost himself in the sensations coursing through his body from being fucked in time to his cock being stroked. Nines removed his mouth from Gavin’s neck as he sucked his earlobe, next. The ragged breath against his wet skin added to the pleasure washing through Gavin as Nines licked his ear sensually.

“Tell me, my darling husband,” he purred, and it drove Gavin insane, “do you still wish to be fucked hard?” Hearing Nines cursing for the second time ever did something to Gavin’s body. His cock reacted wonderfully, and he clawed desperately at Nines’ arms.

“Fuck yes!!” Gavin panted. He needed to come soon. His balls were tight and drawn up, and the familiar sensation of impeding release crept closer. He arched his back, his head grinding down into the sheets.

Letting go of Gavin’s cock, then, Nines gripped his hips; the fingers digging into the soft, white flesh. Gavin mourned the loss of the warm, oily hand around his cock, but soon forgot about it when Nines withdrew from him completely and slammed back into him hard. Gavin screamed and pushed back against Nines as the sensation from being fucked made his mind completely blank of all thought. It just felt too good, and while he knew he was soon going to be sore, he found he didn’t give a crap; not when Nines kept the overall pace slow, but each thrust back in was hard, pounding against that spot inside him until Gavin thought he could come from that alone. Each time Nines plunged back into him, prying him open, the sensations of the friction made Gavin’s spine shudder.

He breathlessly encouraged his husband, “Faster, babe...fuck me faster,” he pleaded between thrusts, urging Nines on by pushing his ass against him. Obscene noises and the sound of the bed creaking filled the room each time their bodies met.

Nines grunted something that sounded like ‘shit’ and picked up his pace, pounding into Gavin hard and fast. When Gavin arched his back, the motion made his chest rise, and Nines licked one of his nipples. Gavin’s breathing hastened drastically when the warm tongue circled his nipple sweetly. Nines suddenly buried his face in Gavin’s shoulder, thrusting even more ferociously than before. All of it made Gavin captive somewhere between the pain and pleasure.

“Oh, yes...fuck me...Nines...yes!” Gavin babbled incoherently and constantly as Nines fucked him. That place deep inside him was hit hard on almost every stroke, making Gavin’s vision blur and his breathing come in shallow gasps. He closed his eyes tightly, trying not to focus hard on the obscene sound of balls slapping against his ass while the bed creaked and slammed against the walls.

Suddenly, Nines snaked an arm around Gavin’s waist, pulling him up onto his knees, and he finally had a hand around his cock again and began stroking it in time to the thrusting delivered against Gavin’s ass. The angle of his thrusts shifted slightly, and when Nines hit a certain spot within Gavin, rich bolts of pleasure melted and rippled through him. A cry spilled forth from Gavin’s lips before he could contain it. His unbound arms wandered up through the air, desperate to clutch at anything, and he clutched at Nines’ back.

Gavin’s breath left him completely and every muscle tensed. His hips thrust erratically into Nines’ fist and back onto the cock impaled in him, fucking himself wildly as his climax approached while Nines repeatedly aimed for the same sensitive spot deep within Gavin.

“NIIIIIIIIIIIIINESSSSS!” Gavin screamed as his orgasm gripped him moments later. It ripped through his body in a tidal wave unlike anything he’d ever experienced before. His hands gripped at the silk sheets, his knuckles turning white as wave after wave hit him hard. His body began convulsing in involuntarily spasms as semen pumped out his cock as though it was under extreme pressure and coated Nines’ hand. Nines continued pounding into him, his cock hammering against his prostate on every stroke, prolonging his husband’s orgasm until he thought his heart would jump out his chest. His vision blurred to black at the edges as the last wave of orgasm shuddered through him. A tight breath burst from Nines’ silent lips as he went on burying himself inside Gavin, and then Nines suddenly went tense above him and he let go of Gavin’s cock. That breath was raw and sexual, and it made Gavin’s heart beat hard as his insides clenched, bearing down hard around Nines’ hot shaft.

The weary detective crashed back down onto his stomach, and Nines gripped the pillows next to Gavin’s head tightly. “Fuck!! GAVIN!!” Nines growled and started to come in hard thrusts, shooting his seed deep into Gavin’s body, filling him with a warm, wet heat. Gavin’s body went limp, but Nines kept him from slumping forward by the strong grip he had back on him as he held him up again. The tall, powerful android rode through his orgasm while panting out for his husband. Gavin looked up with heavy eyelids to watch Nines climax, and was in awe at the erotic beauty of the man in the throes of passion. He had never seen such an attractive man outside of porn coming this way, but like this, Nines was stunning. Gavin couldn’t imagine ever wanting anyone else.

Eventually, Nines’ thrusting stilled, and he collapsed forward, pushing Gavin down into the mattress, covering him with his body. Gavin felt the strong pounding of a thirium pump against his chest and smiled. He felt so alive, and it was all thanks to his husband. They both lay panting in silence, Nines’ softening member still buried deeply within his body. Once their breathing slowed slightly, Nines carefully pulled out of his husband’s body, rolled off him and lay on his back, staring at the high ceiling.

Gavin rolled over and lay boneless on his back, unable to move. As he looked over at Nines, he saw the corners of his mouth turned up in what he knew was a smile.

Nines felt Gavin’s eyes on him, and he turned over and smiled. “That was…”

Gavin snickered, “I’ll say…”

They curled into each other after a moment, and Nines was cleaning Gavin off slowly while Gavin frowned. “You know,” he began sternly, and then chuckled, “gotta say I didn’t think you could make love to me like that.”

Nines huffed, “Android programming, Gavin; I can do many things as though I’m a seasoned veteran…”

“No,” Gavin interrupted, staring down at his ring gleaming in the setting sunlight, “I mean you were always so cold and distant towards me; may I ask why?”

Nines stared at him for a moment, simply cleaning him off as he then threw the tissues away and rearranged the pillows and sheets. “Well,” he began, making sure Gavin was comfortable as he kissed the top of his head and then placed his head upon his chest when he got on the bed next to him. “I was doing it for your own good, and for my own good as well, believe it or not…”

Gavin went to interrupt, but Nines kissed him quickly. He smirked as he continued, “The moment I met you, Gavin, I just _knew_ there was something about you I was bound to end up liking. I was scared it would escalate to the point where I wouldn’t be able to function or perform well at work, and that’s why I tried pushing you away.”

Gavin shook his head, “But you were a jerk to everyone, Nines!”

“I’m drawn to the most bizarre, aberrant things, Gavin,” Nines explained in a soft purr, “for the most part, I find that majority of the officers and detectives we work with have a basic personality, and I was never too keen on getting close to them, and besides,” he played with Gavin’s loose, messy bangs, “I had to keep up the cold appearance of the leader of the narcotics unit anyway.”

When Nines began nibbling his chin, Gavin growled, “But what does that have to do with _me_ , Nines??” he resisted the urge to bite on his husband’s lower lip, just as punishment for the way Nines was eluding answering his questions.

Giving in, Nines sighed as he stared across the room. “I didn’t want to become emotionally involved with you Gavin, because I was afraid that once I started getting to know you, I would be pulled in deeply and quickly because of your personality.” He looked sternly back at Gavin, playing with the ends of his hair upon the nape of his neck. “Think about it; how would you yourself act or feel if something horrible were to happen to me?”

Gavin shivered, “I don’t even want to think about it, Nines,” he looked a little sickly, then, “it just makes me want to puke.”

Nines nodded, “I was afraid of the very same thing, because there was always a small, niggling voice at the back of my mind that encouraged me to get to know you and seek you out…but I chose to ignore it, and besides,” he snickered as he pinched Gavin’s nipple, “you gave me far too much attitude at work that I soon really focused on disliking you.”

Gavin yelped again when Nines this time sucked his nipple. “Don’t do that!” he growled, pushing himself away as Nines grinned in pride over his own actions.

Taking advantage of his shocked husband’s momentarily silent state, Nines licked Gavin’s lower lip before capturing his entire mouth in a deep kiss. Gavin returned it for a moment before he pulled away while scowling. “This isn’t fair, Nines,” he spat, “all this time you kinda liked me, but you acted like a dick just to keep me away from you?!?”

Shrugging, Nines looked at him plainly, “Did you need another reason?”

Gavin shoved and hit him hard in the chest. “You’re an asshole!” he then massaged the area on Nines’ chest he’d smacked, as if apologizing. “Can’t believe you wanted to bone me all along, Nines, and you never had the courage to straight up just so say!”

A playfully dark look was instantly upon Nines’ face. “You insufferable boy,” he growled devilishly while pinching Gavin’s ass, “I didn’t want to ‘bone’ you all this time, to use your crude words,” he rocked his hips against Gavin’s, then, causing the detective to hiss out at him.

Although it felt good, Gavin grumbled as he fought hard not to rock back into Nines. That maybe lasted all of five seconds, unfortunately.

Eyeing him with triumph evident in his eyes, Nines chuckled, “See? You’re perverting my innocent displays of affection towards you.”

Feeling how Nines’ cock rubbed and hardened against his hips, Gavin snapped sarcastically, “Ooooh, I’m sorry??? Who’s the pervert here, exactly???”

Nines kissed the side of his neck, “I merely liked your spirit, your attitude, and your witticism when we first met, and later, due to your capacity for love and empathy, I realized I was more than just smitten with you.”

…………….

Gavin sighed, “You’re _still_ an asshole.”

Chuckling, Nines draped a leg over Gavin, and he rolled himself on top of his husband. “Yes, I may be,” he laughed, “but as long as I’m the one you love, I’m happy with whatever moniker you wish to bestow upon me, Gavin…”

Blinking up at him, Gavin sighed as he smiled a dopey smile and wrapped his arms around Nines. They stayed in each other’s embrace for a long time before Gavin felt Nines growing harder against him again. Pulling away from him, Gavin blushed.

Nines looked down at him hungrily. “You know,” he purred deeply, “I think we should have another go, and this time, why don’t we think about a future with children in it, Gavin?”

Blanching from the thought alone, Gavin’s eyes widened, “No way, Nines!”

Nines chuckled as he kissed Gavin’s neck softly, “Why not?”

“Ummm, because I hate kids? They’re loud, annoying, they smell, and they take up all your time?? Reason enough for you, Nines?” Gavin snapped, but then moaned when Nines slid his cock between his legs and rubbed their arousals together slowly.

Licking the column of his husband’s neck hotly, Nines hummed, deep in thought. “I was hoping for perhaps seven, but I am content with five, Gavin.”

“ _SEVEN?!?_ ” Gavin sputtered in disbelief, “that’s insane, Nines!!!”

He felt his husband’s wet tongue lining the way across his clavicle while his hands roamed his body, and he frozen in numbing delight.

Nines deeply hummed out, “I think it’s a good number…”

“No, Nines.”

“Hmm, how about three?”

“Never.”

Nines laughed warmly as he pulled the sheets up over their heads before his lips sought Gavin’s out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nines...thanks for admitting you were a god damn tsundre all this time.  
> Also, Shelley was kind of ridiculous *in a good way* in this chapter, too! Always makes me laugh xD


	46. Deep Meanings of a Portrait

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Remember that little drawing Gavin did of Nines MAAANY chapters ago?  
> Yeah, it comes into play here ;)

Gavin felt a pair of soft lips grazing over his cheek the following morning. He stirred slowly, stretching and then wincing when he felt a dull throb moving along his lower body. He wished he’d been more patient and more careful with Nines last night, but he soon forgot about the pain when he smelled fresh coffee and toast about in the air…

He opened an eye while rubbing away sleep from the other, and he smiled happily when he saw a breakfast tray before himself on the foot of the bed. Nines had prepared French toast, scrambled eggs, and a hot pot of fresh coffee. It made Gavin’s stomach rumble just to see the food, let alone smell it. Yawning, he stretched as he felt Nines sit down on the bed next to him.

Suddenly, when Gavin turned to gaze into his husband’s eyes, he noticed that Nines had a haggard, desperate look about him, and Gavin was sure that he himself didn’t look much better. He was lightheaded; all the blood in his body seemed to be rushing and pulsing in his groin, and Nines was so close…

In the heat of the moment, before Gavin could lose his nerve, he closed the space between them in a few long strides, and reached up to capture Nines’ face between his hands. In one swift, sweet motion, he pulled Nines down and kissed him hard.

Nines’ tongue plunged into his mouth. And that was it, oh yes, that was it, the culmination of everything. The kiss was jerky and uncoordinated, unbearably sweet, exquisitely, explosively fine. Gavin’s mouth closed desperately around his husband’s. Their lips bruised, and their teeth occasionally clattered together, but it didn’t matter; nothing mattered except for the ragged, steady current of energy shooting through Gavin’s body, making his muscles tense and ripple, setting every nerve on fire. Nines clutched Gavin’s shoulders, and his hips jerked forward, where an exquisite hardness jabbed forth into Gavin’s stomach. A position shift here, a little change there, and oh fuck, he could feel how hard Nines was already…

Gavin’s knees wobbled. A spasm of sensation turned the world inside-out for an instant, but then Nines ended the kiss before they lost themselves in a mess of sheets wrapped and entangled around their limbs.

Sighing lightly, Gavin let him go, and then turned to him and wrapped his arms around his neck in a tight embrace. “Mmm, mornin’,” he purred quite happily, “I could get used to this, you know!”

Nines smiled as he delivered another soft kiss to Gavin’s cheek. He waved at the food before Gavin, “Eat up, we have to get going, soon.”

Gavin sighed as he rolled his eyes and shook his head. “And that right there is a mood killer, Nines,” he grumpily croaked, “can’t we just take the day off??!”

“No we may not, my obstinate one,” Nines hissed lightly, leaning to the side and nipping Gavin’s clavicle gently, “Irina has agreed to cooperate with us, and she promised she would lead us to Il Tėvas herself.”

Gavin snorted, “The word of the bride of a cult leader? How novel.”

Nines rubbed his back while handing him a mug, and then he poured the coffee into it. Winking playfully at his husband, he purred, “I heard you prefer brandy in the morning, but coffee shall have to do instead…”

Gavin’s only response was to blush. He hoped Nines didn’t think he was some major drunkard.

As the coffee rose up almost close to the rim of the mug, Nines whispered in a warm, seductive tone all while gazing longingly and lustfully towards Gavin, “Such a subordinate drink.”

“Stop spoiling me,” Gavin joked, feeling his cheeks heating up drastically the longer he stared at Nines while the android motioned over at a small glass jar containing sugar cubes.

“Sugar?” he waited until Gavin shook his head and mumbled out, “No thanks.”

“Very well,” Nines set the sugar down as he gently stroked Gavin’s shoulders for a while as Gavin munched on the toast. “It’s the only way we can solve this case, Gavin,” Nines stated gently in his ears, “I know you’re not too keen on trusting Irina, and God knows, I’m not either, but we have no other choice.”

Using a napkin to wipe his lips quickly, Gavin finished his breakfast and tried looking and feeling more optimistic about the current situation. “You’re right, Nines,” he said as he put away the dishes, “I think we can use her to our advantage and get Irina to bring her husband out of hi—ahh!!” Gavin doubled over in pain when he tried getting off the bed. Nines flew after him, wrapping a hand around him as he peered at him nervously and with concern all over his face.

“Gavin?? Are you alright??!” Nines tried helping him up, but Gavin laughed while he wrapped a sheet around himself as he stood up from the bed while wincing and shaking.

“I’m f-fine, Nines,” he half-lied, “I just never…” he turned red in the face, and Nines suddenly caught on. His LED flashed yellow, and he looked away shyly while scratching his head more so out of embarrassment than necessity as he stood up from the bed as well.

“Errr, right,” he hurriedly made his way to Gavin, trying to help him towards the bathroom for a shower. It seemed Nines completely understood him, and he was grateful he didn’t have to elaborate on the matter further.

As Gavin showered, Nines hurriedly changed into a black turtleneck shirt, and black pants. Gavin decided to follow suit, not wanting to be spotted easily. He wore a thin black sweater, black jeans, and black running shoes as they hurried out the door before Shelley could even ask them what they were having for breakfast.

Gavin’s stomach was in knots as they approached the DPD, and for once in a long, long time, he actually didn’t want to be at work. Today was a very, _very_ important and stressful day, and he really had to keep on his toes and be alert, otherwise everything would fall apart in the blink of an eye.

Nines finally parked the car in the parking lot, and he turned to Gavin. His husband was already trying to open the car door and head out, but Nines locked it at the last minute, and Gavin turned to him with a small scowl. “Nines? What’re you—”

Long arms wove their way around Gavin’s neck, and the detective found himself being pulled flush against Nines’ body. Nines had engulfed him in a tight, and desperate embrace. Gavin could tell it was a desperate, highly emotional one, due to how Nines somehow trembled as he cradled Gavin to his chest. Gavin sighed and breathed out evenly against him, and his own arms found purchase around Nines. They held onto each for a long, long time, and Gavin nearly wanted to take a nap right there against Nines. He suddenly felt so warm and safe, and Gavin loved it so much.

Breathing into his ear gently, Nines whispered, “You have to be on your guard, Gavin,” he started delivering soft, slow, and gentle back rubs onto Gavin’s lower torso, and it made the other man grip tighter onto him. Gavin nodded as he sucked in a sharp breath through his nose. Nines felt so good against him this way, and he never wished to let go. Given how desperately the android was hanging onto him, Gavin knew that this was a highly emotional situation for Nines to be in, and he was holding back on saying a lot. This bothered Gavin, and he pulled away from their embrace to stare into Nines’ eyes.

He was unable to meet them, since Nines kept looking away, as if trying to deflect and avoid his emotional reactions. Gavin didn’t like that Nines was still trying to shield him from his true feelings and emotions.

“No,” he gripped Nines’ chin in a hand gently, “don’t look away, don’t block me out, Nines, please!” he didn’t care that he was begging within an inch of his life; he never wanted Nines to be closed off to him again, not when they’d come as far as they had.

Nines craned his neck up to peer into his eyes. Gavin smiled happily, knowing he’d won. He cupped his husband’s face in his warm hands, thumbs stroking his soft skin.

“You—”

Nines cut him off by hurriedly slamming their mouths together. It was a somewhat desperate, violent kiss, and Gavin started to push against Nines while he started to kiss without caution. It was like wondering in a dark forest blindly before a predator finally attacked after stalking its prey. In much the same way, Nines attacked him with this glorious, deep pleasure that made Gavin shiver and pant from it all. Before long, Gavin was kissing Nines like it was the last thing he would ever do in his life. Their mouths broke away from each other while Nines and Gavin’s eyes searched each other’s for something neither of them understood.

The heat and passion had grown too much between them in the car, and it made Nines initiate another kiss. Unlike before, it was slow, as if to savor the moment like a couple seeing off the other on a long trip. Gavin didn’t like how this felt and tried to pull away, but he was gripped tightly by those strong hands once more. He broke away to catch his breath while Nines snuck a hand between his thighs, simply grabbing at him and firmly massaging and kneading his flesh while his knuckles moved in ways that ensured the rough ends of them grazed past Gavin’s heated and growing arousal.

Neither of them knew who moved first, but their lips soon locked together as if to taste this new pull. Nines worked Gavin’ lips like one who was starving of kisses and touches, while Gavin clearly had no way of controlling his moans and salacious cries of passion. After some sloppy attempts, Gavin gained control over himself and mastered his emotions a little. His brain reminded him where they were, and he knew they were getting lost in something they shouldn’t have been getting lost in whilst still parked in the spacious parking lot of the DPD. Still, Gavin started to give really heated kisses to Nines, who in turn, gave his own back. The two started to pant from the kisses yet still kept kissing each other until they both pulled apart to catch their breath. Their eyes had become smoky while they looked at each other. Nines was the one who moved first as if he wanted more and more of it, his LED light a golden yellow as his eyes shined brightly. Gavin started to protest while being assaulted by fresh kisses that showered and peppered all over his neck and face, and that had caused him to moan out louder than he’d have liked in public. Nines continued anyway to kiss Gavin until his own lips were swollen and pulled himself up when Gavin shoved him roughly in the chest.

“Nines!” before he could cry out more, Gavin heard paper rustling, and when he looked down, he saw in Nines’ open palm, a torn piece of paper…

It didn’t take too long before Gavin realized it held his drawing of the RK900 he’d hastily conjured up over a month ago in a fit of anger. He’d hidden it away in his pocket, and then the car for so long, that he’d not only forgotten about it, but he’d put it out of his mind as ever having even existed. Seeing it there however right in the center of the android’s palm with the blue ink facing him made Gavin reel back in shock. He clutched at his chest, and his eyes searched his husband’s worriedly.

His chin quivered as he fought hard to form words. “Nines…I…”

Nines smiled warmly at him as he stared down at the pleasant drawing of himself. “I’m smiling in this,” he pointed out, “and judging by the ink analysis, this drawing is well over a few weeks old, Gavin…” he pushed the torn bits together as if he were completing a unique puzzle.

Gavin gaped at him before Nines stared into his eyes lovingly and gently, so much that it nearly made Gavin faint from the sight of it all.

“Why did you keep this from me?” Nines’ question had taken him by surprise, and Gavin discovered he’d been experiencing many ‘firsts’ with Nines, still. Nines was his first true love, his first male lover, and he’d presented him with the first question he knew he was unable to answer.

Nines still was waiting for a response, but when Gavin peered into the rearview mirror, he saw more vehicles approaching the DPD. They couldn’t stay like this for too long, and he hung his head down in shame as his lips pursed. He softly hissed out, “I just didn’t want you to be mad at me and think I was mocking you.”

Looking at the drawing, Nines smiled fondly. “I do believe in your affections, Gavin,” he softly stated, and his hand curled around the drawing. Gavin soon felt Nines’ free hand grazing over his own, and he gently pried Gavin’s hand open. Nines then placed the drawing in the center of Gavin’s palm before closing his hand around it. Nines brought his lips to the back of Gavin’s hand, then, and he kissed it soothingly and tenderly while closing his eyes.

Moments of silence passed between them, and while both men refused to exit the vehicle, they knew they had to as the clock ticked down on time and voices soon echoed around them. Begrudgingly, Nines finally unlocked the car doors, and in a flash, he’d exited without looking back at Gavin even once.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin could feel the tension and anxiety rising when the narcotics enforcement team had arrived. Nines announced that Dom and Phil were also interested in helping the team, while Kelly and Joe hung back and checked up on the surveillance in the Detroit Airport and Detroit Metro Airport Marriott hotel. This would give the two androids something to do at least while being safe, and Gavin breathed a half-relieved sigh when he knew Kelly was still hanging back where she wouldn’t be put in danger. He couldn’t say the same for the rest of their team, but they had to go through with it regardless. They were all in on this together, and as Nines led them over to Irina’s holding cell, the young woman sneered up at them.

She was already prepared; standing by the bed while holding her hands behind the back as the officers instructed her to do until they’d unlocked her cell door. She waited in a corner, not turning around until handcuffs had been placed securely on her wrists. She was then searched thoroughly by a female android officer and a human officer before they led her out of her cell.

Standing before Nines and Gavin, she hissed venomously at them, “Take me to my husband.”

Nines held out a hand, “You’re not the one to be making orders here, Irina,” he scoffed at her, turning away to face the team, “we’ll leave on my command.”

While Irina stewed and fumed angrily between two officers guarding her, Nines faced his team and led them down the hall. They began hurriedly marching towards the weapons locker, putting on high-grade Kevlar and bulletproof vests. They all wore knee-high black boots with steel-toed tips, the colors shining and gleaming dangerously in the light. The rest of their clothes consisted of combat-ready dark, thick, protective gear and armor.

“Listen well!” Nines cried out while they loaded up their weapons and made sure to have good sharp blades and knives handy on them. “There’s a strong possibility that the High Priest knows we are on to him, which is why we will all be driving down to the airport together, but from there on, we need to try and blend in! That means no walking funny, no goofy music or singing—” he paused, glaring over at J.D. before continuing, “and I expect frequent communication between every team member, go it?!?”

“Yes sir!” they all cried out in unison.

“What was that?!?” Nines cried out, eyebrows raised.

They all screamed out even louder, “YES SIR!!!!!!!”

“Good! Justin!” he waved over the Asian man, “I need you over here for a moment!”

As Justin followed through with the order, the door of the weapons locker room opened, and Connor strolled in. It appeared however that he hadn’t walked in accidentally; he was searching for someone, and when his dark brown eyes fell upon Gavin, he smiled as he ran up to him and waved a hand before him excitedly. “Gavin!” he cried with glee evident in his voice, causing J.D. to raise a heavily pierced eyebrow as he stared at Connor.

“You shouldn’t be here, Connor,” Gavin warned, “we’re about to leave to hopefully track down and arrest this murderous son of a bitch gang leader!”

Nodding quickly, Connor’s eyes brightened at this prospect. “I know!” he joyfully exclaimed, and his voice rang about on the walls of the weapons locker room, “I’m going with you guys!”

Loud, abrupt laughter rang out between J.D., Maria, Gwen, Marshall, and Marlon. Only Phil, Connor, and Gavin glared around the room. Connor puffed out his chest, as if trying to prove his worth somehow in his stance. “What’s wrong with that?! Think I can’t handle a drug bust or the hunt for a gang leader?!”

J.D. played with one of his many earrings as he snickered while staring intently at Connor. “No offense bot,” he laughed, “but you look like the type that will run away as soon as you hear a gun firing off.”

“Actually that is soooo not true,” Gavin corrected while pointing at Connor, “don’t look at Connor like that, he’s a feisty thing; kicked my ass not too long ago in the Archives room…” he then shivered as he remembered their violent encounter, “…I wouldn’t recommend pissing this guy off!”

The team snorted as they got up and checked their weapons and gear. J.D. eyed Connor wearily for a moment, brows furrowed as if deep in thought. His eyes squinted at Connor, and he rubbed his small, light blonde goatee as he then scratched his buzz-cut blonde hair. “Maybe you’re a pretty tough bloke, then?”

Connor winked at him, “I can single-handedly take any armed man twice my own body weight down…” he lifted up an iPhone, “… _and_ I can do so as I am listening to my jams!”

J.D.’s jaw fell open, “What kind of music do you listen to!?!?”

“Glad to see they’re becoming fast friends,” Maria gently elbowed Gavin while she popped into her mouth a large, blue bubblegum.

Once they were all ready, Nines turned towards them, and he led them back out so they could take Irina into the vehicle first. Gavin wasn’t going to deny that his heart was racing the entire time, even though Nines assured him their plan was 99% effective.

_“I’ll always worry about that 1%, Nines…especially when it could run the risk of endangering you…”_

{---@```---@```---}

 

The team stood before the dark police van, the sun beating off the tinted windows as Nines hurriedly completed a headcount. When he was through, and when everyone was accounted for, he looked at Gavin for a moment, mouthing the words, “Are you okay?”

Gavin nodded, throwing him a thumbs-up symbol to go on. It was in the early afternoon already, and time was moving slower than a snail on crutches. The wonderfully warm weather did nothing to ease and soothe his nerves, but it appeared to be something not just affecting Gavin alone. As he stood next to Connor, he saw that the android Phil looked a bit anxious, though he stuck next to Justin and Nines while they loaded the van with their weapons and gear for their itinerary.

Nines began pacing between the members, giving each of them a serious look. “Understand that some of you may not be able to make it out of there unscathed today,” he warned about the nature and reality of their job, and they all nodded as they put on dark baseball caps to shield themselves from the beating rays of the sun.

“I want you all to be alert, stay on your toes, and take care of your partners and team members!” Nines barked out before glaring at J.D., and he had good reason to.

J.D. winked flirtatiously over at Irina while she glared down at the handcuffs tightly woven around her thin wrists. Elbowing her gently, he nodded as he stared at her appreciatively up and down, his eyes hungrily soaking up her slim figure. “You know,” he began in a low growl that emanated lust, “if you weren’t on the opposite side of the board, I’d _definitely_ be asking you for your number!”

“J.D.!” Nines barked, causing the small, blonde man to leap up to attention.

“S-Sir?!” he called back out in a meek voice.

Nines sighed, “Stop flirting with the suspect.”

The other members of the team giggled and repressed rounds of boisterous laughter while J.D. blushed and guided Irina up into the van carefully. He checked her hurriedly for concealed weapons of any kind, and when there weren’t any found on her, he nodded at Nines.

Once the woman was handcuffed properly and securely sat upon a small bench inside the van, the rest of the team also entered, and the doors slammed in on them as they drove towards the airport. While this wasn’t the first time Gavin had been out like this with the narcotics team, something just screamed out ‘death’ and ‘murder’ to him, and he couldn’t shake it off, not even when Connor tried comforting him as he gently held onto him.

Studying them closely, Nines huffed as he shook his head. Connor frowned at him, “What?!”

“If you’re going to tag along, Connor,” Nines spat out icily, “make sure you’re paying your dues by at least comforting Gavin!”

Connor’s jaw fell open, and he scowled in contempt, “Why, I—”

Nines burst out in laughter so suddenly, and it was such a lovely sound to Gavin’s ears. The rest of the team even stared at him in awe, unsure of what to do with it, first, but then they all joined in the laughter as they grinned at Nines.

Connor stuck a finger out at him and wagged it. “Cheeky, Nines!” he spat out, “very cheeky!!”

“Awww come on, Connor,” Nines laughed again, “can’t you take a damn joke?”

While Gavin appreciated what Nines was doing; trying to humor the team and de-stress everyone, it was only a momentary balm, a temporary relief. He struggled hard to keep his worries and concerns to himself, however.

He couldn’t deny the jumping feeling deep in his gut whenever he heard or saw an airplane flying high above in the sky, though…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The calm before the storm!


	47. Something to Live For

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Altogether a pretty crazy, intense scene!! I hope it's a fun read for everyone!
> 
> I hiiiighly recommend you listen to the background music along with the appropriate scene/part, as it's kind of hilarious. When I was writing this scene out, I was just listening to this song as it's always been one of my favorites since I played the Castlevania games, and it just stuck with me a lot in the fight scene.  
> I hope you can all enjoy it!  
> Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jL0UoyFS7Ww

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Irina's words translated to English: Eu espero que você morra, rato feio = I hope you die, you ugly mouse

They’d parked among the large horde of other vehicles, blending in perfectly as they faced the large airport. It was crowded even in the parking lot, noisy, and it smelled of gas, pollution, and anger, more than anything. Plenty of angry citizens bustled about as they dragged crying children around with them, talked heatedly on the phone, gathered their passports, or tried munching on food at the last minute. Clouds breezed by, flags waved in the air on their masts proudly, and as Gavin peered up ahead past the transparent glass of the airport, he saw the hotel looming a couple of hundred yards away behind it.

J.D. began skipping forward happily, but was stopped when Nines stuck out a hand and he slammed his chest into the long limb. He reeled back while hissing something out, but Nines hushed his protest. “We have to head to the hotel on foot,” he explained, “everyone, make sure you’re wired up and have your communication devices on, because we need to go our separate ways from here on.”

Marlon nodded over at Irina, “What about her?”

“She comes with me,” Nines hissed as he unlocked her handcuffs, hooking his fingers onto her forearm as he tugged her over. He slammed a baseball cap over her head. “We can’t let any Ouroboros gang members see her just yet, otherwise, they will start attacking us early on and risk hurting plenty of innocent civilians.”

Checking her ass out lewdly, J.D. whispered, “You could always leave her with me…I’d _never_ take my eyes off of her…”

Turning around to glare openly at him for uttering such a statement with its implications weighing heavily in the air, Irina hatefully pressed out through clenched teeth, “Eu espero que você morra, rato feio!!!”

Gasping, J.D. yanked on Justin’s uniform sleeve, “What’d she say, mate?! I can’t speak French!!”

Standing awfully close to Nines, Phil kept his eyes on Irina. “I’ll be on the lookout for her, don’t worry!”

“No!” Nines argued, “I want you to team up with Gwen, Maria, Marshall and Marlon; I’ll take Irina myself, along with Justin and Dom!”

J.D. sputtered, “What about me?!?!”

Turning to him quickly, Nines sighed, “You’re with Connor and Gavin, J.D…” Nines glared down at him, and he was rather intimidating and frightening. It caused J.D. to shrivel and cower lowly as he wedged himself next to Connor tightly. “Is this clear enough for you, J.D.?” Nines smirked coldly at him.

J.D. groaned, “Alright, alright!!” He moved away from Connor as he rolled his eyes. “Man! No one should expect so much from me! I flunked out of college!!”

Nines grinned, “I know; that’s why you’re here today.”

Marshall snickered, “Yep! Sure don’t need a degree to beat the shit outta people, J.D.!”

Frowning at the hotel up ahead, Gavin chewed worriedly on his lower lip, “Why can’t we just walk around the airport and head directly towards the hotel?! Sure would save us a lot of time, no?”

Irina glared at him from beneath the baseball cap, “It _would_ be easy if my husband’s men weren’t waiting for you posted at every angle around the hotel and airport, you vile monster!!”

Nines gripped her by the arm hard, though he tried not making a show of it as more cars pulled into the parking lot. “She’s right,” he growled morosely, “everyone, stay sharp, and move out, now!!”

They moved away in their given ‘teams’, though no one stuck close to a particular team member as they held onto bags and suitcases, disguised as passengers eager to get on the planes. Everyone played their part well enough until they reached the entrance of the airport. A blast of cold air from the AC smacked into Gavin suddenly, and he froze as he closed his eyes and pushed away a small headache. The chilly air got into his bones, seeped through his muscles, and made him reel back a little. J.D. noticed him lingering back, and he waved him over surreptitiously.

As crowded as the airport terminal was, Gavin felt he was being watched intently. There was no way to effectively tell who a member of Ouroboros was, and who wasn’t, but he glanced around for any obvious signs as best as he could. Connor walked up ahead of him, smiling and waving at a few women who ogled at him and giggled. They all marched forward naturally, and Gavin tried relaxing as he too played his ‘role’.

Glancing up ahead, Gavin saw Nines loop his arm around Irina, and it seemed as if he was walking next to her as though he were a loving partner or her husband. He leaned over, whispering something into her ear, and Gavin frowned. He was no lip reader, but he was certain that Nines was threatening her.

He felt a body brush against his, and Gavin looked up to see two honey-colored eyes. Dom smiled at him as his LED light beamed blue. “Don’t worry,” he whispered, “he just told her not to try anything stupid like running away.”

Gavin felt himself blushing. Was he really that transparent with his thoughts and feelings?? He certainly hoped not, but it seemed as if Dom wasn’t trying to mock him. The android kept up the pace with him as he whispered, “Don’t be too nervous either, Gavin,” he nodded up ahead sharply, “it should be smooth sailing from here on out!”

“Umm, thanks,” Gavin sighed, rubbing his forehead as his eyes darted around nervously. He tried pushing down the waves of fear and worry in his gut, but it was too tough when he seriously felt eyes on him wherever he went. He looked at Dom carefully, “Do you think we’re possibly being followed?”

The android nodded, “I’ve felt their stares, too, but I don’t know who to target first.”

“Well, that’s a relief,” Gavin half-chuckled, “thought I was goin’ crazy!”

Dom shook his head. “You’re a good agent, Gavin; don’t sell yourself so short!”

The words of encouragement helped a great deal, but Gavin still didn’t feel he deserved any of them. If anything, Nines had been the true ‘good agent’, as he never showed fear, never allowed himself to be intimidated by anyone, and was a strong exemplary leader in many ways. He kept his thoughts to himself as he watched family members hugging, kissing, and embracing each other with mixed emotions as they sat or waited in line to book their flights. Security guards walked around the terminal, keeping their eyes on everyone equally, and the noise levels in the airport grew to be too much at once.

Up ahead, Nines brushed past some meal booths and stands people were seated at while feeding themselves or their children, while others sat before their laptops or phones as they engaged in minor forms of entertainment and activity while the flight arrivals and departure times were announced loudly and clearly on speakers echoing everywhere across the terminal.

It was just a normal, regular day to every other denizen of Detroit, but for the narcotics enforcement team, this was not the case at all. They all moved about with caution, trying not to communicate even by throwing signs or signals at one another, which proved to be easier as they all weaved around the massive menagerie of humans and androids in the airport.

Nines tried pulling Irina along carefully, but she would every-so-often drag her feet and stall, as if she was trying to buy time…Nines didn’t allow it for long, and he would growl at her as he dragged her roughly with him. Eventually, they were trying to weave in between two heavyset women and an older man, and Irina turned sideways, making an attempt at passing by them. At the last minute, she shoved her way forward, knocking roughly to the right. She’d slammed herself against the broad back of a man in a brown leather coat. He slowly turned around and scowled at her, and then at Nines when he caught up to her.

Irina smiled brightly at the man. “I’m sorry,” she hissed out softly while giggling, “I didn’t realize I was such a clumsy _fool_ …” her eyes widened, as did the man’s. Nines caught their expressions, and he yanked on her arm violently.

“Don’t talk to anyone, what did I tell you?!”

Laughing loudly, Irina placed a hand on Nines’ shoulder, “How _foolish_ of me!!”

At once, the man with the brown leather jacket dashed forward. He shoved Nines hard in the chest, momentarily stunning the tall android. Once Nines had been thrown back a little, the man yanked on Irina’s arm, pulling her through the crowd with him as he screamed out like a death knell, “BLOOD OF PIGS!!!!!”

There was no time to waste; Irina was getting away, and at once, most of the ‘hidden’ Ouroboros gang members revealed themselves. Gavin and Nines panicked, trying to count how many men there were in total, but it was impossible. Majority of the members had been disguised very well to blend in, and they had been so cleverly playing their roles while the narcotics team played theirs, that no one had noticed anything amiss.

No one had noticed that a few security guards seemed somewhat out of place with their long, dark hair and their serpent tattoos just barely visible beneath clothing or hats. No one had taken notice of the way the border patrol guards held tightly to concealed weapons as their teeth and eyes glimmered dangerously. No one had seen the short-but burly-man with the white fedora hat pretending to read a newspaper while looking up at them all curiously. And no one had of course noticed the code word Irina had used, which started up the speedy escalation of violence now that the airport was teeming with guards.

As Nines darted forward, eagerly trying to chase after Irina, he’d been stopped by four large men. One of them held a taser, another one of them held a knife, another held a small handgun, and the final held a knife as well as a long, silver chain. The man with the chain swung forward at Nines, but the android quickly turned and ducked to the side. The chain slashed out, and spinning back around, Nines kicked it hard towards the left. It smashed into the chin of the guard wielding the taser gun, and he fell forward. Nines leapt up and caught taser gun the man had thrown up in a fit of rage and pain, and he used it just in time, bringing it down upon the chest of the guard with the handgun. The man shot down repeatedly at his own foot, and Nines clasped a hand around the man’s wrist, breaking his bones in one crunch.

Justin and Phil rushed to his aid when another gang member charged at him, but Nines screamed at them to back off. “You two!” he cried out loudly, “go on, and don’t lose sight of Irina!!!”

Both team members wore equally worried expressions, but they made a quick break for the exits leading towards the hotel.

“WE’LL MEET YOU THERE!! LOOK OUT FOR EACH OTHER!” Nines cried out while trying to get the gang member off himself.

Gavin saw Nines in a brawl, and he was eager to help his husband before he got seriously injured. Running ahead, Gavin tried climbing over screaming and panicked citizens in the airport as they struggled to escape the violent and horrific scenes before them.

“Gavin! Wait!!!” He heard Dom crying and pleading after him, but he ignored it. Hot rage fueled Gavin as he fought hard to get to Nines, but then he heard the loud shattering of glass echoing from somewhere to his left. He spun around in the direction the sound was emanating from, only to find that a man who’d been doing the screening tests by a gate had ducked down, grabbed a shotgun, and had broken through the protective glass barrier as he aimed it at Gavin.

The detective felt something slamming into him, and he crashed down onto the floor as the loud bullets blasted through the airport like horrible death tolls. Gavin groaned as he felt hands protectively on his body, and he looked up to see Dom shielding him effectively.

“Dom!?” he panicked, shaking the android lying on top of him, but then he heard a small groan, and Dom sat up, offering him a small wave.

“I’m fine, Gavin!”

It was a relief, but before they could celebrate the victory, they had to get out of the way before they were trampled by the speedy feet of the last few citizens trying to make a hasty escape out of the airport. They were all running for their lives desperately, and emergency signals and lights blared off, echoing around the airport terminal as Gavin struggled to get down and away from the thumping feet. Dom crouched down next to him as they hid behind a bench, and the loud clattering of luggage being abandoned sounded all around them as people practically climbed on top of each other as they ran away.

“Envie reforços!!!” a loud, deep voice rang out, and Gavin stared at Dom. He shook the android, and they struggled to fight over to another hiding place, just by the doorway of the washrooms.

“Hey,” Gavin cried out as clearly as he could in the middle of all the noise, “what did he say??”

“He said ‘send reinforcements’!” Dom translated the Portuguese quickly.

Gavin nodded as he fought to catch his breath, “Yeah, I thought he’d say something like that…”

Immediately, five men in dark trench coats burst in from the far end of the airport, and they raised their hands simultaneously. In less than a few seconds, they threw forward silver canisters. They rolled over before the team, and as a few more people were running and still fighting to get away, Connor cried out in a warning, “IT’S TEAR GAS!!”

It sprayed and exploded everywhere in an instant, releasing its painful, toxic cloudy mist. The human team members began coughing as they dropped to their knees, and while they were distracted, the men in dark trench coats put on filter masks, and they raised dark machine guns at the group.

Dom screamed out in fright, “MOVE! EVERYONE MOVE, NOW!!!”

Marlon dropped to his knees while coughing and waving a hand in his face wildly, “I can’t see shit!!”

Maria and Gwen turned to his cousin, Marshall, and the man had cleverly draped up a cloth over his nose and mouth. His eyes still watered as he struggled to move forward, but Maria grabbed his arm and pointed up at the top of a dining booth. “Marshall!” she cried out in between small coughing fits, “boost me up so I can shoot these fuckers from above!”

He nodded at her, “You bet!” he then got in a crouching position as he stood before the booth, and he cupped his hands next to Gwen’s, and on the count of three, they let Maria run towards them. She leapt up over them, stepping quickly into their palms, and they hoisted her above into the air as they shrugged their shoulders upwards and backwards while under the cover of the dining booths in the food court.

Maria sailed upwards, landing gracefully on her feet as she pulled out two semi-automatic rifles, and began shooting at the feet of the gang members. While she shot away at them, Gwen and Marshall pulled Marlon out of the way of the tear gas. They were soon able to slide around a corner, but then were assaulted by a thin man wearing a black ski mask, and black leggings. His ambush surprised them all, as they were still trying to fight off the horribly foul, burning sensation from the tear gas while wiping away their stinging hot tears.

The man that had attacked them really was highly skilled and proficient in martial arts; he spun around and leapt up on the walls like a spider, bearing down upon Marlon’s head as he struggled to take the taller male down in a hurry. In a jiffy, he’d woven his arms and legs around Marlon’s waist and neck in a tight choke hold.

“God damn it!! Get him off me!!” Marlon cried out while trying to keep his balance. It was impossible due to how powerful the man in the dark ski-mask was, however, and he didn’t even leave breathing room for Marlon as he mercilessly assaulted him with his limbs.

Gwen tried wrapping her arms around his neck to pry him off Marlon, but he flicked out a knife at her, and he slashed it right through her gloves. She shrieked, falling back onto the floor as Marshall got up to take care of the situation.

“Get your damn hands off my cousin!” he roared angrily, but the man was far too aggressive. He swung a leg forward while still hanging off Marlon’s shoulders, and it connected violently with Marshall’s shoulder. He too fell onto the floor roughly next to Gwen, and they both roared as they leapt up to their feet. They were ready to keep attacking; fire burning hotly in their eyes, but before they could advance, a loud explosion went off.

“GRENADES!!! THEY’VE GOT GRENADES!!!!” J.D.’s warnings came a bit late, as a very tall man soon pushed through the crowd of people still trying to break down the doors as they fought for their lives and safety. They panicked even more when the man that had approached was holding a flamethrower…

“FUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!!!!!”

As rounds of gunfire and explosion went off, Gavin hid himself beneath a fire blanket while the pyromaniac sprayed forth the putrid flames. There was hardly any time to get away; the flames burst forth and caught onto artificial plants, setting them on fire while Gwen and Marshall tried to grab at the man in the ski mask pushing down on Marlon’s back.

Gwen growled angrily, “What the hell is Maria doing up there?!?! Can’t she take the flamethrower bastard out already!?”

Somehow, Maria heard her, and she cried out a few feet away on top of the booth, still. “I’m hurrying as fast as I can, Gwen!” she snapped as she reloaded her rifles, “if you think you can do a better job, though, come right up here yourself, pretty lady!!”

Gwen laughed as she ducked a blow from the man in the ski mask, “As if! How’s the weather up there, sweetheart?!”

Maria whipped around with large, surprised eyes, “Huh??”

At once, due to the rising flames, the building’s fire sprinkler system went on, and the cold water rained down upon everyone in large puddles. Marlon roared in pain, desperately trying to shake off the man in the ski mask away, but it was no use. He soon drew his hand back, and he withdrew another knife from his pocket, aiming it directly for Marlon’s neck.

Through the spray of the water, no one could see anything, and just when the blade was about to sink itself into Marlon’s flesh, there was a mighty roar from ahead. A chain flung forward, and it coiled itself around the throat of the man on top of Marlon. He was yanked forward, and he collided violently with the floor as someone yanked on the other end of the chain. Still looped around his neck, as he tried struggling to get it off, the grip tightened, and he was dragged forward and met face-first with a strong fist. His nose gushed blood, and he slumped forward, out cold.

Marlon coughed as his cousin rushed to his aid, and Gwen wiped water from her eyes as she squinted ahead. “Sir!!” she cried out happily once she saw Nines. The RK900 was furious, but he helped Marlon and Marshall up to their feet effortlessly.

“Is everyone alright?”

Gwen huffed as her dark brown hair dripped with water, “Define ‘alright’, Sir…”

Maria was still shooting boldly at the remaining gang members who were trying to aim their weapons at J.D., Connor, Dom, and Gavin as they hid about. In the middle of their deadly battle, J.D. crawled over to hide beneath a water fountain as he trembled in fear. He gasped when he glanced up from his hiding spot and noticed that the flamethrower guard had now traded in his dangerous weapon for a mini rocket launcher.

Maria’s jaw fell open when she saw the guard pointing it up at her, and it was all ready to go…she dropped her weapons, turning as she quickly scrambled towards the edge of the roof of the booth.

Nines waved at her erratically as his LED light turned red, “MARIA! GET THE HELL DOWN FROM THERE, NOW!!”

Hurriedly, she dove off it, flipping and rolling through the air in a tiny roll as she tucked her limbs into her body protectively. The rocket launcher shot forward a moment later, and her sense of timing was too damn good. It smashed against the roof of the booth, causing it to explode as sparks flew about it. It then began toppling to the left, much like a domino, and it knocked into the neighboring booth, smashing the support pillars as they all toppled down and exploded in electric sparks and bolts.

Maria was safe, and she landed by Nines’ feet. He bent down, helped her to her feet, and snuck a finger beneath her chin, tilting her head up so she was looking at him. “You okay, Maria?”

She panted heavily, playing with her long, blonde ponytail, “I think so! But I nearly got my wings clipped back there!”

Gwen and Nines tugged her over to hide behind the corner of the wall the rest of the team members had been using for temporary shelter and a protective shield. Nines then peered around the corner, and he saw Dom clinging on to Gavin as he tried laying the man flat on his chest so they were out of the line of fire.

“Gavin!” Nines raced up ahead, not caring that he was risking his own life. He grabbed a vending machine close by, and he toppled it over on its side, making a small barrier and shield for Gavin as he gently pried him out of Dom’s hands.

“He’s fine!” Dom cried out while placing a hand on Gavin’s back, and Gavin clung to Nines as he trembled with shock and fear. He was barely able to catch his breath as he nodded at Nines while the android felt along his forehead, and then his wrist as he scanned him and tried feeling his pulse.

Gavin gently shrugged out of his grasp, “I’m okay, Nines,” he reassured his worried husband, “you have to take care of the rest of the team, they need you—”

“And I need _you_ to be safe, Gavin,” Nines said clearly as he tilted his head over at Dom, “we’re going to regroup with the team, now, and we’re going to fight our way towards the hotel!”

Dom sighed, “I’m not much of a fighter, Nines, and we’re kind of outnumbered!”

“That’s never stopped me,” Nines answered back as he looped one of Gavin’s arms around his neck and gently dragged him up. They waited until the guards were speaking hurriedly and softly in different languages, and Nines crouched down low as he pulled Gavin along with him. Dom followed closely behind, hot on their trails. They luckily and thankfully made it back behind the wall the rest of the team was hiding behind, not too far away from the x-ray luggage scanner systems. They all ducked beneath it as they gaped around at each other.

The floors were beyond soaked, but thankfully, the fires had been put out, and the sprinklers had been shut off. Papers were strewn about as they hung out of briefcases, suitcases were singed, the toys of children had been abandoned, and yet some people were still in hiding as they cowered in corners and behind other overturned luggage carts and trolleys. The entire place looked less like an airport, and more like a battlefield, and it was all thanks to them…

Gavin shook Nines gently, “Where are Justin and Phil?!”

“Don’t worry,” Nines reassured him, “they’re already inside the hotel, and they’re being guided by Kelly and Joe. The other two androids have hacked the security system, and there should be no way for the High Priest or Irina to be able to tell we’re still alive for now.”

Gwen snorted, “I highly doubt that matters much when we’ve started World War three in here, Sir!”

Ignoring her, Gavin shook Nines harder while he stared at the innocent civilians still trapped within the war zone of an airport terminal. “We have to get these people out of here, Nines!”

Maria shook her head, “No Way! We’re sitting ducks here, and we’re wasting time by letting Irina get away!”

“Silence!” Nines snapped at her, and then nodded at Gavin, “We’re going to move forward as a team, but Connor and J.D. will be in charge of protecting the rest of the civilians!!”

Marlon and Marshall stared over and caught sight of J.D. still hiding beneath the water fountain, while Connor wriggled over to him on his chest and belly, resembling a worm. Marlon snorted, “You want to put your trust in _them_ , sir?”

LED light red, Nines glared at Marlon. “I do,” he snarled, “do you have an issue with that, Marlon?”

The other man snapped up to attention, eyes wide with fear, “No Sir!”

“Damn right,” Nines hissed to himself, and then he connected with Connor telepathically.

**_Connor, are you listening to me?_ **

It wasn’t too long before the RK800 turned his neck and stared at Nines with a small smile on his face as he huddled with J.D. beneath the water fountains. **_Yes Nines, I am!_**

**_I need for you and J.D. to be strong, now, and I want you both to bring down the rest of these bastards, do you hear me?_ **

**_Loud and clear, Nines, loud and clear! We got this!_ **

That calmed the RK900 down, but he remained serious. **_I’m going to have to leave you both for a while, but I want you two to catch up to us whenever you’re ready. Take care of J.D., and if you renege on this task, I will make your life hell._**

 ** _We will, now go, Nines! You’re wasting time!_** Connor’s voice promised victory, and great confidence, and Nines knew then he’d made the right choice.

A second later, a shot was fired right into a pipe of the water fountain J.D. was hiding beneath. The pipe exploded from the wall, disconnecting itself away from the fountain, and water sprayed and poured down over J.D.

The wet man screamed and sputtered as he shook water off himself. “LOOK AT THE DAMAGE!!!!!”

Nines turned to the rest of the team, “Alright,” he kept his voice down low when he heard gang members searching for them once they’d stopped shooting and once the smoke and debris all cleared up. “We’re going to head out around the shooting, and I want everyone to stay close, keep down low, and remember not to waste ammunition!”

Maria groaned, “Sir, can we really be sure that Connor and J.D. can cover us??” she fearfully stared over at the doors at least a couple of hundred meters away, “we have a lot of ground to cover!”

“I know that, Maria,” Nines stated coldly, “but the less yapping we do here, the more ground we can actually cover!” With that said, he didn’t wait anymore; he gently held onto Gavin, and placed his body before the shorter man’s as he led the team forward. They crept down low, and Connor and J.D. stared at them for a moment before J.D. panicked again and shielded his arms over his head.

“Connor!” he cried out worriedly in a tiny voice that cracked, “they’re going to come here and find us!!!”

Connor peered over the fallen vending machines and shook his head. He’d seen the shoes and boots of the gang members approaching steadily, but now wasn’t the time to tell J.D. that and run the risk of freaking him out. With fake confidence he didn’t really have, Connor beamed down at J.D. while gently trying to coax him out from beneath the fountains. “J.D.,” he stated warmly and in a comforting tone, “we’re almost clear! We’ll be done soon!”

Lifting his head slowly like a turtle trying to come out of its shell, J.D. smiled innocently up at Connor with wide, childlike eyes, “Really?”

Nodding, Connor smiled back, “Yeah!! And don’t worry J.D…” he held out from his coat pockets two pistols, “…I got us covered!!”

With renewed energy and excitement, J.D. leapt up. “Hell yeah!” he cheered, “let’s do this!!”

Hearing them moving and getting up to their feet, a few gang members whispered and hissed out to each other quickly as they readied their weapons while the rest of the team began sneaking behind their turned backs.

“They’re still alive!” one of the members hissed out when he heard glass crunching and breaking behind the overturned vending machine, and they all aimed their weapons at it. Soon, one of the members even threw in their direction some strange poisonous gas. The substance rose up in bits of heavy, thick smoke that was a grey-green shade. People immediately reacted by coughing up blood, heaving and crashing down to the floor, and even going into full-blown panic attacks and cardiac arrest.

Connor and J.D. edged their way along the length of the overturned vending machine, and when Connor attempted to peek around over it, multiple bullets were fired at him. “Damn it!!” he ducked down in the nick of time, turning over to J.D., then. “The gas and toxic fumes are interfering with my ability to scan! See what’s going on if you can, J.D.!!”

The other man obeyed, quickly poking his head out from his side of the vending machine, and he coughed as he fanned himself and tried not breathing in what was left over from the horrific poisonous gas.

Connor eyed him nervously, “Well??”

J.D. shrugged apathetically, “A lot of poisoning, and cheating, and just all around cunting going on here!”

Majority of the passengers and crowds of people who weren’t gang members continuously ran out of the way, clutching onto their suitcases and personal items as they ran and screamed, desperately making attempts to get out of the way as the narcotics team snuck away and Ouroboros gang members still in disguise shot at the vending machine. They sprayed it and riddled it with bullets once the toxic gas had dissipated, but there weren’t any signs of movement from the damaged vending machine.

While they were distracted, everyone on the team headed towards the exits and got dispersed and divided. Gwen, Marlon, and Marshall soon followed Dom, who was carefully scanning and planning the best and safest route towards the entrance so they could get to the hotel securely while communicating with Joe and Kelly telepathically. The humans followed Dom while ducking behind counters, benches, and luggage as they hid about and shielded themselves from the deadly spray of bullets and gas the Ouroboros members unleashed before them. Nines and Gavin stuck together, the former constantly checking and making sure his husband was feeling alright as they kept up with the rest of the team.

As the gang members were searching for them around the vending machines, Connor surprised them by leaping on top of the backs of one of the members while J.D. hid behind a trash bin. Trying to clear a new path for himself and J.D. so they could get the hell out of the mess they landed in, Connor grabbed one Ouroboros gang member by the wrist and spun him around like wheel, eventually letting him go as the man soared and flew through the air and landed directly on top of another two guards who’d been approaching them. Both Connor and J.D. were quite a team; quickly and professionally disarming many gang members who dared attack them as they hid and ran about in the airport terminal.

Panting heavily from their strenuous task, J.D. covered for Connor while the RK800 surveyed the damage caused to the airport. Gaping about in horror, Connor cried out, “Everything’s falling apart, J.D.!!”

Peeking around, the other man chimed in, “Shit! You’re right! You should _really_ get on that, mate!”

Glaring down at him, Connor screamed irritably, “J.D.!!! We’re _both_ partners, now!!”

They snuck around and weaved their way between toppled over carts and luggage, sticking together while Connor pre-planned a safe route for them. In the midst of all the wreckage and chaos, as a few loud gunshots echoed about over their heads, J.D. grabbed Connor’s iPhone from his pocket.

Connor frowned at him while they ducked down behind a trash bin, “What’re you doing?!”

“Seeing what music you have!” J.D. laughed. “Here!” he placed the phone into his front vest pocket as he turned up the volume and pressed ‘play’.

Waiting until the gunfire and smoke had cleared up, Connor waved a hand at him, “Come on!”

Following him as they crept down and kept to the floor, J.D. let the music randomly play while Connor got in the right mood and hummed while bopping his head in time to the music. As they hid behind an overturned bench, Connor loaded his firearm swiftly. “I've been searching for a man, all across Japan,” he breathed out in a perfect sing-song tune while effortlessly tossing the gun to J.D., “just to find, to find my samurai!!!”

He was met with a tiny scowl when he looked over at J.D., but in seconds, the other man grinned as he bopped his head in time with the music as well.

“Someone who is strong, but still a little shy! Yes, I need, I need my samurai!!!” Connor rose to his feet, firing off warning shots straight ahead, and a row of gang members screamed as they fell back and hid beneath their cover.

“I like this song, Connor!” J.D. snapped his fingers, keeping on Connor’s heels as they made their way forward.

Connor tossed him a wink, “I told you I have good taste in music!” he then threw his head back as he sang out, “Ay, ay, ay I’m your little butterfly! Green, black and blue make the colors in the sky! Ay, ay, ay, I’m—”

Suddenly, J.D.’s radio communication device buzzed. “YOU MORONS!” Nines’ voice bellowed out at them, causing them both to shut up, “now is the _most_ inopportune time for singing!!!”

“Errr, right, sorry sir!” J.D. cried out apologetically while he rolled across the floor and cleverly dodged more bullets. He stopped behind a small wall that was a part of a food terminal in the left-hand part of the airport, and Connor was busy reloading their weapons. They soon heard growls, and they yelped as they leapt apart when a gang member with a long machete swung forward at them. When they moved away, he fell onto the floor, the blade of the weapon sliding into the tiles of the floor.

The iPhone also was sent sliding along the blood and ash-stained floors, and the moment it crashed against the roughness of the floors, the music switched to _Castlevania: Symphony of the Night Music, Wood Carving Partita._ The overpowering, Neo-Baroque haunting harpsichord blasted out loudly while a synthesized orchestra accompanied it in the background.

“MOVE!” Connor screamed out, rolling backwards as he was suddenly grabbed by two more large members. They wrestled his weapons out of his hands, sending them both clattering across the floor. Connor put up a good fight, still; he stepped on the foot of the man on his left, and then elbowed the one on the right straight into the nose. As the man cradled his injured body part, Connor swirled around and kicked him hard in the chin. He sailed backwards, and Connor leapt on the back of the remaining man as he snapped his neck in one clean motion.

Clapping enthusiastically at how agile and skilled Connor was, J.D. cheered him on as he fought his way through lines and rows of guards. “Way to go, Connor!” he chirped with redness in his cheeks from excitement, “soon, we’ll be done here, and able to move on with our lives!!”

No sooner had J.D. stated this, when a fist slammed into the side of his neck. He rolled and tumbled down to the floor, though he was luckily as far away from the machete-wielding guard as he could be. He tried picking himself off the floor so he could steady his aim and fire with his gun, but it proved to be a tricky task when guards assaulted him at every angle, their fists cutting and jabbing into his flesh.

“WITH OUR LIIIIIIIVEEEEESSS!!!” J.D. screeched out again, sliding away along the smooth floors as he missed the next few blows to the head which could’ve been deadly had he not ducked away in time.

Recovering from the sudden attacks, J.D. kicked a guard right between his legs, the tip of his steel-toed boot connecting with the man’s balls. Shoving him aside once he was down, J.D. huffed in disappointment as he stared at Connor. “It was all going so well until _he_ turned up,” he growled out, pointing at the knocked-out gang member with the nod of a head.

“J.D.! Look out!” Connor warned once the smaller man had his back turned to a few more large, muscly guards. They all swooped at him simultaneously, trying to bash him over the head with weapons, and one even held a deadly chipped brick in his hands.

J.D. leapt out of the way as he screamed anytime the guards would follow suit. “HE FUCKING MOVES WITH YOU!” J.D. cried out in fear, ducking when the brick was flung forward at him. It smashed somewhere against a wall behind him.

Eyeing the dangerous guard with the machete steadily approaching, Connor screamed out in a warning, “J.D.! Get away from him!!”

“YOU CAN’T SIDESTEP THIS PIECE OF SHIT!!” J.D. screeched while remaining ducked down, and he cleverly kicked the machete clear out of the guard’s hands. The man was wearing heavy police gear and armor, and he wasn’t going down that easily, but thankfully, when his machete slid out of his hands, Connor kicked it as far away from his reach as possible.

J.D. flipped them off angrily as he spat up at them, “We’ll have to trade blows, I see, you fuck up!!” Then, as J.D. stood back onto his feet, he accidentally bashed the top of his skull into the guard’s nose, and it gushed blood when it broke from the sudden impact. The guard fell back into another guard behind himself, and they both crashed clumsily to their feet.

The knocked-out guards weren’t moving, now, but J.D. still checked by kicking them both in the ass and back with his boot. “Overpowered anus!!” he beamed with an air of great pride; certain they were out cold as the harpsichord of the music in the background ended on a lovely trill.

While Connor fought to safety, eager to help J.D., he found his and J.D.’s temporary ‘break’ from menacing guards didn’t appear to last long. Soon, J.D. was attacked again, and as he fought to grab his weapon and steady the shot, two more gang members hurled themselves at him. They knocked his weapon out of his hands, but he yanked out his knife in an instant. Meanwhile, Connor made a dive for his guns, but he was gripped violently by the ankles and dragged back by one more member who’d appeared out of nowhere. Kicking into his forehead, Connor managed to wriggle free, but his weapons were shot at by a fresh spray of bullets. He had to momentarily forget them while he ran about for cover as J.D. struggled with the two gang members who wanted to take him down.

J.D. practically danced and swayed like a mesmerized cobra while he clung onto his make-shift shank, “Hot damn, Connor,” he laughed, “watch me finesse this fucking sword!”

Seconds later, he was immediately bashed against the bars of a terminal gate by the two opposing Ouroboros guards, and his knife went skittering and sliding across the floor far away from his reach.

Connor clapped sarcastically while sighing as he hid behind a bench, “Oh, phenomenal fucking job, that was flawless!”

J.D. scowled at him while ducking and avoiding the fists and blows from the large guards attacking him, “Oh, shut the fuck up and go back to your wire-play and wanking!!!”

Connor deftly prevented a nasty blow to his head that an approaching Ouroboros member wanted to deliver as he snuck behind him. Whipping around, Connor latched onto his wrist, and snapped it back as he kicked the man as hard and as violently as he could in the chest. He went sailing backwards until he landed in a food cart, and it toppled over messily.

Holding up a finger, Connor cried out, “Just so you know, it’s a common misconception that androids engage in wire-play!!”

J.D. rolled his eyes, crouching down and ramming his shoulders into the stomach of guard who was still attacking him. “So glad you cleared that up for me, Connor!!” J.D. cried out in zeal and vigor, “my stupid arse will need to remember that information for our future!!”

Connor froze for half a second, tempted to ask J.D. what that statement specifically meant, but they were still not in the clear, yet.

Grunting, Connor wrapped his arms around the neck of the guard still trying to take J.D. down. With superior, inhuman strength, Connor lifted the man up high into the air, and brought him down crashing onto his back as he body-slammed him down along with himself. Connor remained unaffected by the force of the crash, but the guard blacked out immediately. He went limp, and Connor shoved him aside as he stood up and brushed himself off. The terminal and all its areas were now clear, and they weren’t in danger.

J.D. cheered as he clapped Connor on the back for saving his life. Turning away from the horrific, violent scenes all around them, J.D. waved him over, “Let’s go, Connor!”

The android lifted an eyebrow, “Where are we going?!”

“We’re done here, come on!” J.D. cried, slightly out of breath, “we need to regroup with the rest of the team!!”

Connor stubbornly shook his head, “I want to have my own shank, J.D.!”

The other male snarled as he held his head in his hands and screamed, “Oh for fuck’s sakes, who taught you that fucking word?!?”

Though they started bickering, their feet knew what to do, and they quickened the pace as they heard the calls from the other team members.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And yes, it is heavily implied here that J.D. has started to develop feelings for Connor, otherwise he wouldn't have mentioned the masturbation and wireplay, nor would he have made a reference to future interactions with Connor!!!  
> I just wanted Connor to have a minor love interest that wasn't Hank because I wanted to do something different in this story! (No hate against Hannor shippers, by the way!! Ship what you love! <3)


	48. Leviathan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One step closer to our 'final boss' aka Nojus the gang leader!
> 
> Also, pay attention to J.D.'s dialogue xD

 

The sun was slowly setting by the time they’d made it outside the front doors of the large hotel. It loomed high above them like a monster from a fairy tale, but Gavin knew that they had to press forward. On any other given day, the hotel actually looked lovely and welcoming. There were wonderfully exotic and colorful flowers deeply embedded and encircled within their flowerbeds. The outer perimeter lights were slowly turning on due to the setting sun, and the building gave off a wonderfully ethereal glow, in spite of the fact that it was also a dangerous place harboring a dangerous criminal. Connor and J.D. had bought them enough time, as all the remaining guards were either heading into their deaths, or were disappearing as their numbers dwindled in other ways, but that didn’t make anyone feel safer.

Dom held a hand over his LED light as he pointed at the back doors, “They’re unlocked,” he announced, “Justin and Phil are on the third floor, too!”

Before they could move forward, Gavin grabbed Nines’ shirt by the bottom of it. Nines froze, spinning around as he frowned down at Gavin, “What’s wrong?”

Gavin sighed in exhaustion as he looked up at the purple-pink clouds. Although the scenic view had meant to be soothing, it wasn’t. No birds sang or flew by, and the wind hardly breezed by. It was all just too humid and hot, and it made Gavin feel like choking. Not wanting Nines to worry more than he already clearly was, Gavin offered him a weak smile. “Do you think this will work?” he asked softly, and Nines didn’t understand what he meant.

Noticing his question had confused his husband, Gavin leaned into him and rested his head against his neck. “I mean going after the High Priest,” he explained a little more succinctly, “does it matter at all, Nines, or are we just blindly heading straight into hell?”

Gavin felt warm hands wrapping around his shoulders, and he closed his eyes as he let out a content sigh. _“I wish we could just stay like this…Nines…”_

Fingers gently wove their way towards the back of his neck, and then rested onto his skull. Nines tilted Gavin’s head back as he peered into his eyes and gave out a sad, soft sigh. “Gavin,” he began softly, almost as soft as the way the wind picked up, and as soft and gentle as the way in which the footsteps of the team members echoed and pattered along the pavement as they snuck inside the hotel. “Ouroboros lackeys don’t fight; not without the orders of the High Priest. If we kill or capture Il Tėvas, it _will_ put an end to all this.”

Gavin knew it was true, but there was a part of him that refused to go along with it. “I don’t want us roped in this, Nines,” he pressed out, tossing a brief glance over Nines’ shoulders around the lobby of the hotel, which held very few people in it. Majority of those staying in the hotel were nervous, frightened, and trying to escape, as they had no doubt heard the noise and deadly commotion from the neighboring airport not too long ago.

Still rubbing his back soothingly, Nines nodded, “I understand and can empathize with your feelings completely, Gavin,” he nuzzled his face on top of Gavin’s skull, burying his nose and lips in his thick hair, “and god only knows I wish there were another way we could do this, but alas, there isn’t one…”

Closing his eyes and letting out a shaky breath to calm his nerves, Gavin nodded. He leaned back as he reluctantly pulled himself out of Nines’ embrace, and he saw that the rest of the team members were waiting for them behind the glass doors of the lobby. “Alright, Nines,” he smiled weakly, “let’s go.”

They hurriedly entered the hotel, and it wasn’t long before Justin and Phil crowded around Nines desperately. Justin’s face was flushed pink, and even Phil looked disturbed as he stared wide-eyed at his superior. “Sir,” Justin began, “I’ve just received news from Kelly and Joe that the High Priest is somewhere in the building, but he rented at least six rooms under different aliases, and we have no idea which one he’s really in.”

Nines scowled at Phil, and the other android’s LED light turned yellow as he shivered. “And you didn’t bother scanning the building?” Nines asked, though it was presented much like an accusation instead.

Phil shook his head, LED light red as he seemingly tried again, and then slumped forward. “I can’t, sir,” he whispered, almost embarrassed of himself as he closed his eyes and hung back a little, “something’s happening within the building, because I can’t scan anything anymore!”

Scowling more, Nines didn’t believe him at first, but as he looked around with his LED light yellow, and then red, he sighed. “You’re right,” he admitted, “they’re preventing even my abilities and barring them, and I’m not sure how.”

This was terrifying to hear. If Nines-the leader of this team-wasn’t able to rely on his unique powers to ensure safety and security to all the team members, then how could they proceed forward? Worriedly, Gavin felt incredibly weak, but he still wanted to try and help. He studied the lobby and elevators of the hotel, trying to seek out what was amiss, but he couldn’t find anything. The lobby and seating area looked clean, fancy, and recently renovated. Yellow-orange lights hanging on the walls and pot lights installed in the ceiling flickered and gave off a low hum whenever an explosion outside went off. The plants and indoor pool and water fountain quietly streamed out water, while the air conditioning made the plant leaves move and sway about lightly, as if dancing and egging the team on. Grey and blue seats and cushions sat about on the floor, but suitcases, bags, carts, food trays, and luggage still hung about on the seats or beneath the furniture. TV and entertainment sets in the center of the lobby had been shut off, but there were handprints plastered onto the screens, giving off a strange, eerie feeling that minutes ago, the lobby had once been filled children…

More eager to find the son of a bitch cult leader even more, now, Gavin pushed past Phil and Justin as they softly whispered plans of approach out to Nines.

They all threw curious glances his way while Gavin noticed that the elevators were still working, albeit, very slowly.

“Gavin?” Nines whispered at his back as he approached him slowly, “what’re you doing?”

Gavin looked down at the floor. “Trying not to waste time,” he answered in a sullen tone, “we have to find out where Irina is, and I’m willing to help create a distraction for you so you can get the team spread out on different floors and areas of the hotel.”

Stubbornly, Nines shook his head. “No, Gavin,” he began gruffly, “we move together as one unit—”

“We’re slowing down!” Gavin snapped, and as Maria, Marshall, Marlon, and Gwen reloaded their weapons while sitting on random tables and benches strewn about in the lobby, then nodded as they sadly looked between each other.

Eventually, Marlon nodded curtly, resting his chin over the barrel of his assault rifle. “He’s right, sir,” he added in as he stood up and pet Gavin on the back firmly, “we’ll cover more ground if we all tackle different floors and levels.”

Nines didn’t want to agree or go along with it, and he seemed to be having an inner debate with himself as his eyebrows furrowed and set down firmly on his brow. He turned around, letting his back face his team as he pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head. Finally, he gave in, turned back towards them, and sighed. “Very well,” he nodded at everyone, “but I want you _all_ to request immediate help and backup if you’re overwhelmed! Don’t bite off more than you can chew, and for goodness sake, don’t get too confident!”

While they all nodded in agreement, the doors of the lobby slid open, and Connor and J.D. ran inside. Before they could cheer and congratulate themselves for making it through in one piece and boast to Nines, the RK900 held out a hand before them and stopped them from advancing. “Connor, J.D.,” he barked out their names, and they froze as they regarded him with tilted heads and curious expressions. “I need you both to try and escort the rest of the people staying in the hotel and around it to safety,” Nines instructed, and J.D. groaned as he threw his hands up in the air and spun around.

“Why do we _always_ have to do this?!?” he shrieked out angrily, but Nines only grinned.

“Because I said so,” he answered coldly, “and because I am your superior,” he gave J.D. a small shove, “now get going!”

Mumbling for a moment under his breath, the blonde-haired British man whispered at Connor, “I’m sorry pet, this is the only task we’re fit to do, I guess!”

Connor waved him off with a kind smile, “I’m up for it, J.D.”

Yanking out a cigarette from his vest pocket, J.D. then grabbed a lighter, lit his cigarette once he’d balanced it between his upper and lower teeth, and sighed out through smoke, “It’s not really like me to leave a partner unsatisfied, love, but know that I’m by your side until you finish, and then maybe we’ll get to second base!”

A few members of the team who’d been listening in winced and cringed at the awkward double-entendre, whereas Nines roared, “Get moving, you two!!”

Only Connor seemed to obey right away, and he nodded in confirmation as he accepted this task. “We’ll be fine, Nines!” he chirped out, “go on ahead!”

“I want half of you to take the elevator,” Nines instructed, leaving the choice up to the rest of the team as he gripped Gavin gently and pulled him towards the grand staircase. “The rest of us will disperse and ascend by the stairs! Let’s go!!”

Gavin pulled himself out of Nines’ grip as they headed up the stairs. “I don’t want you sticking by me, Nines,” he pressed out painfully, “they’re after me, and I don’t want to endanger you—”

“Hush now,” Nines hissed softly, “we’re sticking together, and you’re not going to change my mind.”

Gavin tried frowning heatedly at Nines for his defiance, but he soon found himself breaking away into a grin as wide and as playful as the one his husband wore. Nines was just too damn cute for him to stay mad at.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

The hotel was quiet; far too quiet, in fact, and it made Gavin’s gut clench. He could almost hear the thumping of the footsteps of the other team members a few floors above himself, and he hated that they were so loud in such ghastly and creepy silence. Nothing seemed right, and he felt they were all walking into a death trap.

Nines searched through the abandoned guest rooms carefully, relying on the powers of his eyes only. They both found that hardly any guests were lingering about in the large, vast hallways and rooms, which greatly relieved Gavin. He didn’t want to stumble upon more dead bodies; no more blood needed to be shed on this day. They braced themselves carefully as they moved about from room to room, but they were all mostly empty, and they were drawing up the end of the hallway and the end of the fourth floor soon enough.

Opening the door into another stairwell, Nines led the way, and Gavin hung back. He leapt up in fright whenever he saw their shadows on the walls, and he cursed himself for being so jumpy and scared. Nines was too bold, and Gavin admired his courage as he pressed on forward, a gun held in his hand as he peered up the steps. He waved Gavin over when the coast was clear, and as they inched their way up towards the fifth floor, Gavin hissed out, “Where’s this simpering, cowardly leader?” he ground his teeth together as he held on tightly to his handgun, “the son of a bitch only knows how to hide, doesn’t he?”

Nines effortlessly opened the door leading towards the hallway, and he stared at Gavin for a moment. “Be careful, Gavin,” he warned, “the pusillanimous, parsimonious High Priest has eyes for you, and there’s a high possibility that he’s watching us even now.”

While Gavin had to agree with it, he hoped that wasn’t the case at all. He tried shrugging off the weird sensations itching along his shoulders and back, and he saw Nines approaching a landing and a long, metallic railing that opened up a view leading down towards the main lobby. The suitcases of the guests still strewn about looked as tiny as little ants down below, and Gavin felt a little nervous, then. He hadn’t realized they were so high up already, and he turned towards Nines as the RK900 leaned slightly over the railing and peered down below at the view.

“Come on, Nines,” Gavin whispered, “we should—”

Suddenly, a high-pitched feminine scream hit his ears. Before Gavin could turn around and see what had happened, he was slammed backwards as Lady Irina flew through the air at him wielding a katana. It gleamed dangerously in the light, and as Gavin scrambled backwards to get out of the way, Nines dove forward and tried bashing Irina in the face with his gun. She cleverly ducked at the last minute, however, and as she rolled to the side, she held up the katana in a threatening stance.

Nines held out his gun, but before he could pull the trigger, something let out an audible ‘swish’! Within seconds, his gun had fallen to the floor in pieces, and Nines gaped down at it in horror.

Lady Irina smirked as she flashed the katana before him as she stood back a few feet. “I love this weapon so much,” she purred, “it’s an old trick weapon my husband had specially crafted and designed for me, and it can only be wielded by a master, you see…” as she said this, she held up the weapon horizontally, and she snapped it in the center in two halves. As Gavin and Nines watched in horror, the katana was now a dual-wielding piece, with the blade in Irina’s left hand being a little shorter than the right piece. It was still deadly in spite of the short appearance, and Gavin reached for his gun as quickly as he could.

Unfortunately, Lady Irina was faster, and she spun around in three circles as the blades of the katana swished and cut through the air. She knocked Gavin’s gun out of his hand, and it went sailing backwards over his shoulder over the railing and down towards the lobby below.

Nines kicked Lady Irina in the ribs, but it only stunned her momentarily. She moved backwards, targeting Nines instead of Gavin, then.

Nines frantically waved at Gavin, “Leave!! NOW!!”

“NO!” Gavin cried back, but they didn’t have time to argue; Lady Irina wasn’t slowing down on her assaults and attacks any time soon. She deftly swung her blades sideways, trying to cut through Nines’ outstretched arms, but he ducked down and wrapped his arms around her legs as he brought her down heavily to the floor with him. She cried out angrily as she kicked him in the face and flipped back up onto her feet like a cat. She brought the katana blades up behind her head, and she bent forward as she delivered a brutally strong blow that had been aimed right for Nines’ head.

Nines slid away, keeping down on the floor while Gavin tried getting up to his feet. Lady Irina had knocked the wind out of him earlier, and due to his initial shock, he hadn’t realized that he’d heavily battered and bruised his back and shoulders when he connected with the railing posts. He wheezed in pain as he tried steadying himself on his legs, but it was impossible with how Nines and Lady Irina were fighting. They nearly knocked into Gavin, but he still tried landing in a few blows to slow down the mad woman as she swished her blades at Nines. The android blocked each blow, and when Lady Irina had enough of it, she gathered the blades back together in the middle, forming the katana back in its single, long original manner. She held it up high above her head, and she then brought it down violently and strongly into the floor.

It thundered and rattled against the floor, and while she still had it in one piece, she reached down into the back of her shirt and beneath her jeans, and she pulled out a once hidden AK47. Instead of firing it at Gavin or Nines, however, she riddled the floor with bullets as she’d just smashed into it with her katana. She shot directly into the floor as she furiously glared up at Nines and Gavin. They had no idea what she was doing, but as she emptied her gun into the floor, she then tossed it ahead at Nines. It smashed into his forehead, and he reeled backwards while trying to stay on balance.

Lady Irina used this to her advantage however, and she once again extended her weapon as she snapped it in the middle. She brought her right hand down, but Nines moved backwards, but she then twisted her body, and used both her right and left hand to slice away at him. Her katana snagged his black shirt, and he cried out in shock. He had no more room to go, and as he slammed back against the top of the railing, Lady Irina kicked up at him. Her feet landed directly in the center of his chest, and Nines was flung backwards over the railing.

“NIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINESSS!” Gavin cried out in fear, but he could only watch in horror as his husband clung for dear life on one of the bars of the railing as he hung down from it. Gavin worried that Lady Irina was going to shoot at him or make it so that he lost his grip, but he wasn’t her target and interest any longer.

She turned back to Gavin, raising the katana up high, but before she could attack him, there was a loud creaking sound right from beneath their feet. Gavin peered down at the floor where Lady Irina had shot through violently, and he knew they were going to fall.

The evil woman coldly grinned at him, “Punishment for bringing guns to a fight against a Lady,” she giggled, and in one second, she leapt up through the air, hooked her hand onto Gavin’s right shoulder, and then sneered down at him. “I’d hold on, if I were you…” she then bashed him over the head violently, and he passed out, his world and vision fading to black slowly.

The floor caved down around them, and all Gavin could faintly hear were the panicked and fearful screams and cries of his own name on Nines’ lips. Explosions went off around them everywhere, and Gavin felt his eyelids growing heavy as a hot, sticky substance ran down from the top of his head over his forehead. He smelled something coppery, and he knew it had to be his own blood. He was losing energy, but he felt a cold rush of air against his body as Lady Irina dug her nails into his skin, and they were being pulled and sucked down by gravity slowly…

He was falling, and time was irrelevant; it both sped up, and then slowed down, but there was nothing he could do about it. He was defenseless and weak, and all he did was give in to the numbness that had spread along his body as his world turned pitch black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...yeah I'm not one to fight Lady Irina anytime soon, and I used to fence as a hobby.  
> Just saying.


	49. The High Priest

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter needs no further explanation. The big boss is out and about.
> 
> Lithuanian translation : Palik mus, Alejandro = Leave us, Alejandro

The first thing Gavin’s body registered was a searing, immense amount of pain, followed by discomfort. His limbs were numb, and when he tried moving them, they tingled with pain that was unlike anything he’d ever felt. Something hard was pressed at his back, and when Gavin’s vision had cleared, he looked around himself and his immediate surrounding with weary eyes. He soon saw that he’d been propped up into a sitting position, his back against the wall as his head throbbed and pounded from pain. His ears were still ringing due to the explosions, gunfire, and other hellish noises, and it would take some time before his ears and hearing had been set back to normal, he thought.

He gaped and peered around himself, and he finally was able to look around himself beyond just the area he’d been seated in. He was in a bedroom, but the room had very little furniture within it, almost as if someone had removed it all. There were marks in the carpet where a dresser or a table had once been, but there were no signs of the dresser or table. Nothing except a few paintings and photographs of flowers and random trees were on the walls, which were a dim yellow color, almost as yellow as the lights in artificial candlesticks that had been placed on hooks within the walls.

The carpet was bright red, and it hurt Gavin’s eyes when he stared down at it, so he once again tried moving himself up off the floor. All his efforts were useless and futile, however; it seemed as if his body had no ounce of strength or energy, and he merely flopped back against the wall like a puppet with its master when he tried forcing himself to stand up.

On the other side of the white door a few feet before him, Gavin heard voices, but before he could try and identify any of them, the door suddenly squeaked open. Soft footsteps hit his ears, and as he squinted ahead to try and get a clear view, he saw the bare feet of a man with slightly tanned, cream-colored skin. His body hair was all shaven off, skin smooth, and he was dressed in white summer shorts, and a black shirt. Around his neck, he was wearing a necklace bearing the emblem of Ouroboros. It was a shiny, silver medallion of sorts, but Gavin made out the symbol of the snake devouring itself clearly.

Odd, this man didn’t have the symbol tattooed onto his skin either, just like Lady Irina…

His eyes fluttered up to the face of the man, but before he could take a good look at him, the man pressed a gentle, damp cloth over Gavin’s eyelids, forehead, and across his temples. “Shh,” he soothed in a tenor voice, “just try to relax.” Although he had a gentle, soothing voice, the fact that he wore such an emblem when the other gang members didn’t made Gavin feel that this man was chiefly unique…he must’ve been a higher-ranking member.

Groaning, Gavin tried looking up at the man’s face, but he saw the cloth brought down into a small bowl filled with warm water before it was raised up to his face again. His brain told him that the man was cleaning his face and wounds, and Gavin finally was able to summon up the strength and breath to wheeze out, “Why’re you doing this?”

Slowly, the cloth moved over his forehead, but as the seconds ticked by, the man’s hands completely stopped. He let out a sharp breath, and then continued washing Gavin’s face. When his arms lowered, Gavin was finally able to get a good, clear view of him.

“Dear god,” Gavin coughed out, “you’re not even twenty!”

Indeed, the young man barely had enough of a facial stubble associated with his age, his brown eyebrows were thin, and they had been neatly plucked and trimmed. He had dark hair, light blue eyes, and his hair had been highlighted at the tips in a soft, platinum blonde shade. He had one earring in his right ear, wore smoky grey-blue eyeshadow, heavy eyeliner, and he was wearing a light pink shade of lip gloss on his lips. They were thicker than a woman’s, and he smiled a white, bright smile as he shook his head at Gavin’s earlier comment. “I’m twenty-two,” he stated factually, “and I am perfectly capable of taking care of things around here.”

Gavin felt blood somewhere in the back of his throat, and he coughed, trying not to throw up when he tasted the horrible coppery liquid in his mouth. “Who are you?” he thought the man had a strange accent, but he didn’t exactly look too much like one particular ethnicity by sight and appearance alone.

The young man hummed as he placed a hand on Gavin’s chest, “I’m Alejandro,” he stated his name with an air of pride, “half-Peruvian-half-Swedish,” he giggled, and it sounded so innocent, despite appearances. “Interesting mix, no?”

Having nothing to say to that statement, Gavin only stared intently at Alejandro, and he soon caught the young man’s attention. They were gazing carefully and deeply into each other’s eyes, and Gavin whispered fervently, “Please, just get me out of here, Alejandro…”

Before Alejandro could respond, the door creaked open for a second time, and as Gavin peered over Alejandro’s shoulders, he saw another man lingering in the doorway. This man was slightly taller than Alejandro, and as he held open the door and stared over at them both, Gavin’s heart raced terribly in his chest, and he felt sick to his stomach.

This man needed no introduction. It was the High Priest; it was Il Tėvas.

Gavin tried moving away as the man approached, but he was unable to. The High Priest calmly sighed in Alejandro’s direction, “Palik mus, Alejandro.” His voice was strangely gentle, almost like a faint caress, but it was also warm and rich in emotion and passion. Gavin had no idea what to make of the High Priest, but he didn’t feel too relaxed when Alejandro got up and gathered the bowl and cloth into his hands, throwing one small look over his shoulders at him before he closed the door softly behind himself as he obediently padded out of the room.

Now that Gavin was alone with the High Priest, he was able to study him carefully. He didn’t appear to be that much different in appearance from the photos Gavin had retrieved from Raoul’s phone; he was decently built in a physical sense, had thick, dark hair that hung just beneath his jawline, dark brown eyes, and slightly long and thick eyelashes. He appeared very calm in comparison to Gavin, however, and he merely grabbed a chair that had been placed close to the door as he sat down in it and folded his hands in his lap. He was dressed in black, leather pants, had black socks on his feet, and was wearing a bright red dress shirt. Like Alejandro, he was wearing an Ouroboros necklace, although his was larger than Alejandro’s, and golden in color. The eyes of the serpent were bright red, and as Gavin stared at them, the High Priest ran a finger along the demonic looking symbol and snake.

He chuckled softly, “It’s the symbol of our faith,” he whispered, as if telling a story to a child before bedtime. He then stared at Gavin’s wounds and torn clothing, and he sighed, “I do apologize about the crude violence, but had my wife done her job properly the first time, there’d be no need for such senseless torture posed against you.”

_“So it had been Lady Irina who’d attacked and shot at me the very night that I ran back to my apartment…”_

Gavin grunted as he tried wriggling up, but only ended up falling over limply. The High Priest merely watched in mild amusement, his eyes shining dangerously in little glints. “It’s useless to move, Detective,” his voice ghosted over towards Gavin, “I’ve already injected two times the regular dosage of my deadly Slo-Freeze into your veins, effectively paralyzing you for some time.”

Gavin snarled, “What do you need that drug for!? You obviously don’t care about the profit you gain from it!!” he watched as Il Tėvas calmly grinned a predatory grin.

“I might ask of you the same thing, Detective,” he drawled softly, his voice completely barren of any accent, “what did you think of that beastly legend about the mindless, ailing creations I’ve created?” he hummed, “have you profited at all? Or do you expect to reap more from this nightmare, even if it means my murder?”

While a part of Gavin wanted to toss these all off to the ravings of a lunatic, he couldn’t help but give in to the part of himself that was always curious. He leaned forward, slouching to the side as he felt his body and head weighing a ton, suddenly. “Those people…” he winced, “…I did some research on your drug,” he groaned, feeling his muscles giving in as he crashed to the carpet. He closed his eyes, though he felt the pain ebbing away as his adrenaline pumped through his veins. “The drug,” he continued again with difficulty, “it turns people into brain-dead things, d-doesn’t it?”

The High Priest held a strange gleam in his eyes. It appeared as if he were so proud of himself, then, and he chuckled again as he revealed his white teeth to Gavin. “To you, Detective, it may appear that way,” he spat poisonously, “but my purpose is so much greater. I don’t expect you to understand it right now, but when you transform, you’ll see…you’ll see…” he leaned forward in his seat, staring into Gavin’s eyes as he gripped his chin in his hands.

“These people are lost, Detective,” he snickered mildly, “they need someone to guide them; to show them right from wrong, to save them, to heal them…I’m merely chosen as an instrument to do that, and as I will it, so shall it be.”

Gavin’s head was spinning and swimming with pain, and he tried recoiling away from the touch of the High Priest, but his body and his actions weren’t his own. He only closed his eyes while the High Priest studied him, and after some time, he released his face as he sat back in his chair.

“Even in a foreign land where everyone is blind, there needs to be a King; a Supreme being,” he stated coldly, and it send shivers up Gavin’s spine. “I am a savior, don’t you see?” he held out a hand, “a true shepherd in need of his flock as the world is reborn.” He chuckled again, folding his hands in between his legs as he crossed one over the other, “When Judgement Day is upon you, don’t you want to have a spot in Heaven, Detective?”

“You…you’re c-crazy!” Gavin spat, feeling his eyelids weighing down heavily on him, and he knew that struggling was making things worse for him. But he didn’t want to simply give up, either, but he was running low on energy; even talking proved to be a difficult, painful feat, now.

Unaffected by his insults and screams, the High Priest merely brushed his hands along his own pants, wiping and patting his skin dry. Smirking with haughty arrogance about him, he shook his head at Gavin slowly. “You can lead by example, Detective,” he announced joyfully, “you can be the one to show my people that stray sheep can indeed be saved! That’s your purpose here and your role in my work, don’t you see?”

Gavin spat at his feet, but due to his inability to control his body and motions, it ended up as a stream of saliva and drool a few inches away from his own mouth. “Fuck you,” he snapped aggressively while the room spun around him, “you are n-n-nothing but a f-fucking monster!!” All this man wanted to do was to ‘zombifie’ people using Slo-Freeze, and then force them to join his religious cult. That’s what it had been about the whole time, and Gavin felt sick to his stomach knowing that a lot of innocent people in Detroit were already terribly addicted to the drug, and thousands upon thousands of others would soon follow in their footsteps.

The High Priest turned his nose up at the statement, “You’ll see and feel differently, I’m sure,” he said while footsteps ran around outside the tightly closed door of the room. The High Priest then rose, pushing the chair back as he smiled down at Gavin almost in a friendly manner. “Thank you for bringing the rest of my lost lambs to me, Detective,” he stated warmly in phony gratitude, “soon, we shall all be reunited, and you’ll understand the fruits of my labor, I’m sure.”

As Gavin cried out expletives at him, the High Priest merely walked back towards the door, and then exited the room. He left Gavin yelling and screaming as he wriggled uselessly on the floor. It was all so useless indeed, and Gavin rolled onto his back as he whimpered in pain. Tears freely flowed from the corners of his eyes, and for once in his life, he found himself praying for help as he lay on the floor of an unknown, hidden room deep somewhere inside the hotel.

He wondered just who would hear his prayers first…

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Nines tried gripping the top of the railing, his feet dangling in the air as he fought hard to pull himself back up. The floors and pillars of the building were shaking as the narcotics team members shot up the rest of the hidden gang members about the building. Everything was shaking and crumbling to bits, and Nines fought even harder to gain leverage so he could spring himself back up. He cursed Lady Irina for catching him unawares, and he worried constantly for Gavin’s sake. He hadn’t caught much of what had happened from his vantage point after the rigged explosives went off cleverly, but he assumed Lady Irina had abducted Gavin and fallen away beneath the basement levels of the hotel. That was where he needed to be, but it was impossible when he was almost slipping and sliding down into gravity’s treacherous pull.

The walls trembled and shook, and as Nines looked and craned his neck up ahead, he saw drywall and bits of plaster from the walls falling out, especially around the screws holding the railing in place across the landing. It was all going to collapse!!!

He panicked, though he reminded himself to stay calm as he hoisted himself up onto his chest. It rested along the smooth railing, and as he slid his lower body upwards, there was a dull ‘creak’, and Nines felt the railing swiveling as it shook from side to side. It was only going to be a matter of seconds before gravity pulled him down, and he would definitely be rendered useless if he fell from this height.

Trying not to look down, he almost had a hand over the railing, when it jut out of the wall completely. He estimated that it wasn’t going to hold him up for another second, and he screamed out in anger as it slowly fell backwards down into the air, ready to take him down with its deadly plummet.

“I’VE GOT YOU, SIR!!!” Like a cry from heaven, a hand snatched out for him, and Nines felt the hand snaking around his wrist. As the railing slid out from beneath his body, Nines was yanked forward, and he was pulled up against the side of the landing. He used the rest of his strength to claw at the floor, and he pulled himself up the rest of the way, collapsing onto the floor in a heavy heap.

The metallic railing and its poles went crashing down below, smashing through glass, TV sets, tables, chairs, and breaking everything in sight beneath it.

As Nines turned around to thank his savior, he was faced with Marshall, Marlon, Gwen, Maria, Justin, Dom, and Phil. They all high fived each other as they pet Nines on the back to comfort him.

Nines snarled, “Don’t celebrate yet, you fools!”

Carefully edging around the giant hole in the floor Irina had created earlier, Justin stepped up to Nines as he frowned, “Sir, we got the rest of the Ouroboros members, and Connor and J.D. reported that the remaining civilians are safe!”

Gwen nodded eagerly, “Backup’s on the way, too!”

Roaring, Nines stood, making sure he didn’t fall into the giant hole in the floor. “The witch took Gavin!” he screamed, his hands clenching into fists as he tried making his way for the staircase.

“SIR! WAIT!” They all cried out after him, but Nines was so livid in his anger that he didn’t stop. He ran all the way towards the door, smashing through it as he kicked it open with all the force and rage burning within himself.

“SHE HAS GAVIN, AND I’M GOING TO GET HIM BACK!!” he cried out in a terror of a scream, shoving their hands off his shoulders and back as they tried holding him down.

Marlon stomped a booted leg down roughly, expressing pure panic mixed in with rage, “IT’S DANGEROUS, SIR!”

“YOU CAN’T GO ALONE, ARE YOU NUTS!?!?” Maria screamed over top of Marlon and Marshall, but then Nines wheeled around and glared down at them all. They cowered beneath his gaze, their mouths snapping shut and their cries dying away into the air as Nines spat at them viciously.

“As long as they have Gavin, I’m _refusing_ to sit here and wait!” he turned once more, heading back down the stairs, “I’m going after Gavin, and I don’t care if I have to do it alone!”

As Nines tore away from the group, the levels and walls of the hotel began collapsing. The team got slightly separated due to falling columns and explosions that triggered off more damage everywhere. Bits of the ceiling caved in and fell between the women of the team, Marlon, and Dom. They were now caught behind a large plaster-prison of a wall, and the barricades were oncoming as more portions of the ceiling rained down on them.

Shoving Justin, Phil, and Marshall out of the way, Nines anticipated where the most dangerous bits of wall and ceiling were about to fall. “Get out of the way!!” his cries didn’t go ignored, thankfully, and the men he’d been trapped on the other side of the wall with cradled their heads as they cowered down to the floor.

As soon as the dust and racket had settled, and things seemed more ‘stable’, Nines inched up to the large mountain of rubble that was mostly ceiling and wall that blocked his way between the other team members. “Is everyone okay??!” he cried out in concern, and he heard coughing on the other side of the thick wall.

“We’re fine, sir!” Gwen cried out first, and then Maria confirmed they were okay.

“I’ll try to find a way to you,” Nines assured them, “just remain calm and—”

“Stop wasting time!” Dom’s voice rang out above everyone else’s, “go get Gavin!!! NOW!!”

Nines didn’t need further encouragement, and he cried out a breathless ‘thank you’.

They still had to make it to the stairwell. Determined, Nines crawled over to it while simultaneously trying to avoid being in harm’s way. He waved the rest of his men over with a hand, and they carefully climbed down the stairwell while gripping onto each other. The building was shaking and trembling, and it appeared as though a nasty earthquake had been the cause of it all.

Pressing on, they eventually made it all the way down to the bottom, where they faced another white door that led into a large storage room almost the size of a gymnasium. It appeared to also be a ‘furniture loading dock’ of some sorts, as plenty of older furniture had been stored around on the second level of the room above their heads high past a catwalk.

Nines turned on the lights as the rest of his men filed in behind him, and Nines heard Justin whispering, “They aren’t here!!”

“Damn!” Nines hissed, knowing Justin was right once he’d scanned everywhere quickly. He didn’t catch any body heat readings, and when he turned around the storage facility one last time, suddenly, he caught the steady infrared image of something beating and moving…

His hopes flew up high, and he cried out, “Gavin?!?!”

Ignoring the warning cries of his men, Nines leapt forward, tracking the heat source up the large levels of steps leading up to the catwalk.

Heavy footsteps were his answer, however, and it didn’t take too long for Nines to figure out that whoever was up there wasn’t Gavin…

“I’m sorry to disappoint you,” a surprisingly steady and calm voice spoke out to them from the darkness and shadows up above, “but it is not your ‘Gavin’.”

Nines stiffened in fear, and the rest of his men froze as well, aiming their weapons high at where the voice had come from.

A figure stepped out from the blackness above, and as the light consumed and illuminated them, Nines’ eyes caught sight of the serpent emblem dangling from around the man’s neck. At first, Nines had just assumed this man was lost and a guest in the hotel, but upon eyeing the emblem, he knew exactly who this was.

His lips curled back, and Nines felt his temper flaring. “You’re the one I’ve been after this entire time,” he hissed, “you’re the leader…the High Priest…”

A cold grin was upon the man’s face, and as he stepped down from the top two steps leading up to the catwalk, he merely nodded. “And you’re the thorn in my side,” he pointed out, and Nines looked towards his hands. The High Priest was wielding a long, sharp sabre, the curved blade glimmering dangerously in the light as he moved down the steps slowly. The more light shed down over the deadly weapon, the more they all could see jagged, sharp ends all over the blade specifically designed and fashioned to appear menacing and potent. The handle was ingrained with a ruby jewel that glittered whenever the High Priest twirled the sword around, and the weapon itself had to be at least fifty or sixty years old.

Knowing they were all glaring at his sabre, the High Priest grinned a putrid, vicious grin that was meant to indeed intimidate them all. “How should I extract this thorn that pesters me so?” he asked the rhetorical question in a whisper, following it up with a deep, cruel chuckle.

Roaring angrily, Marshall aimed his gun at the High Priest, but Nines shoved it down right away.

“We should kill him now, Sir!” Marshall screamed as he tried steadying his weapon once more, but Nines held him back while the High Priest laughed.

“You could,” he stated with a soft chuckle, “but then you’ll never get to see your lover again…” his eyes were staring right into Nines’, and Nines knew immediately he was referring to mercilessly and ruthlessly slaughtering Gavin. This sent his thirium boiling, and he could hardly restrain himself. He wanted nothing more than to attack the High Priest and fire off at least fifty bullets into his body, but he knew they would never find Gavin if he did that.

Glaring with all the hatred he had left in him, Nines stood back. “Where’s Gavin?!” he cried out in a strong demand.

The High Priest merely pointed at the rest of his men, “Get them to put their weapons down,” he ordered.

“Sir?” came Phil’s meek voice.

Not even sparing a second, Nines cried out frantically, “DROP YOUR FUCKING WEAPONS, NOW!”

No one argued, and Nines watched his men drop every single one of their weapons. They kicked them forward across the room while the High Priest descended to the second-last step. He stopped, then, and he held a very cold, menacing look upon his face as he stood facing Nines.

Holding a hand up, he waved at someone standing behind himself in the shadows. “Alejandro,” he purred with delight, “take the weapons away at once.”

With a smile beaming brightly at them, the young male stepped out from behind the High Priest, and he collected and gathered their discarded weapons into his arms before retreating into the shadows high above on the catwalks.

Smirking confidently at Nines, the High Priest inhaled sharply, “You’ve come to finish the job, then?” he asked, and as Nines scowled with venom and hatred forward at him, the High Priest merely chuckled as if he found this all far too amusing.

Eyes gleaming with malice, the sadistic leader snarled, “Do you _really_ wish to fight me even now in _that_ state??”

Nines only nodded, shaking from anger as he struggled not to explode right there.

“Tsk tsk,” the High Priest shook his head, “such a strange oddity you are…” he then merely grabbed another sword he’d hidden behind his back, and he tossed it strongly and swiftly at Nines.

Nines caught the handle with sharp and quick reflexes, and he held it to the right side of his body as he prepared himself while his men stood by. No one seemed to breathe, blink, or even swallow down their saliva as Nines and the High Priest stood glaring away at each other.

The pause was far too deadly between them, and it nearly was suffocating. Blasts and explosions ricocheted above and around them, but it didn’t matter; this was a set event meant to happen since the very beginning.

And then, suddenly, wielding his sabre high into the air, the High Priest flew forward at Nines without a warning.

 

* * *

 

*Silence all around a huge, wide open space/arena*  
*Thinks to self* : Smells like a boss battle coming up.

 


	50. Chaos Reigns

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Holy god damn shit, this fight scene was so much fun and so epic to write.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italian to English translations for the High Priest's and Alejandro's dialogue: 
> 
> Ti ho detto di nascondermi= I told you to hide  
> Sono preoccupato per te= I'm worried about you  
> Non avere paura, Alejandro= Don't be afraid, Alejandro  
> Ahh, c’è quel sorriso che volevo vedere= Ahh, there is that smiled I wanted to see  
> È solo una ferita di carne, haha= It's just a flesh wound

Their blades clanked and swished in the air, and Nines hurriedly blocked the first attack the High Priest was trying to deliver above his head. The man recovered quickly from it, however, and he merely kicked Nines in the shins as he swiped at him once again with the sword. Nines crashed to the floor, but he quickly backed away when the High Priest brought his sabre down and slammed it by his hip. It smashed onto the floor loudly, and Nines rolled out of the way in time as he leapt up to his feet in a hurry.

As they fought away rapidly and boldly at each other, Alejandro appeared from the darkness above on the catwalk, watching in awe as he gaped at them.

“SIR!!” Phil screamed out, wanting so very desperately to get involved, but Nines wouldn’t allow it.

The sadistic monster somehow was able to overpower Nines, and he took him by surprise when he knocked his arm wielding the sword down and quickly snaked a hand around Nines’ shoulder. Soon, Nines was rammed and slammed repeatedly against a storage trailer’s wall, his back making horrible noises against the solid object anytime the High Priest bashed him against it while laughing viciously.

Again, Phil approached with fire burning in his eyes.

“STAY BACK, PHIL!” Nines screeched, sliding to the right when the High Priest sliced at his side. The blade almost hit him, but Nines was fast on his feet. He spun himself around the High Priest, trying to get in a brutal thrust attack, but the moment he attempted to bring his sword down, the High Priest knocked it back with his own curved blade.

How was this creature so fast?!?!

For once in his life, the RK900 was truly stumped and baffled. This man moved like the wind; he was in one second right before Nines’ face, and then at the next, he had turned himself over to bash the blunt end of the sword’s handle over the back of Nines’ skull.

Nines tripped and fell over his own feet, but he held onto his sword as the High Priest tried diving for him once more. He held up his blade in time to meet the High Priest’s, and when their swords connected, sparks flew. They each pressed down hard on their sharp blades, trying to win the battle of strength. Their faces were inches apart from one another, and as Nines reared up with all his might, the High Priest backed off him for a moment, but it was indeed only for a moment. The man hardly gave Nines any time to recover from his brutal blows, and soon, he was unleashing a flurry of attacks Nines had to really work hard to block.

His limbs swung about wildly as the High Priest cut away faster and faster. The man used the tips of his toes to swing and swish himself about, and it appeared as though they were dancing, suddenly…Nines was losing the beat and rhythm of this dance, however, and he felt his stamina being drained right out of himself the longer he tried keeping up with the deadly human unleashing a series of quick, sharp attacks. One of them aimed for his shoulder, and when Nines slanted his body out of the way, he nearly fell to the floor. Catching himself at the last minute, he circled the High Priest ever so quickly while flying back up. If he missed even once, it’d be a fatal error.

While he tried backing away from the death blows, Nines felt the back of his legs hitting something. Looking over his shoulder for a split second, he caught that it was a box, but before he could crash into it, the High Priest kicked him hard in the chest. He flew back a little, but he planted his legs into the floor, and he recovered his stance and defense posture in no time. The High Priest wasn’t letting him go that easily, unfortunately. He delivered a swift high kick to Nines’ forehead, causing the tall android to lose his balance once more.

Nines fell, but he stuck out a hand and braced his weight back up on it. He leapt back up in time to block another deadly assault, but as he spun to face the High Priest, the man lunged forward at him, and suddenly, sharp teeth had buried themselves in Nines’ neck.

The High Priest had bitten him. Nines could hardly believe it, but it was indeed the case. He couldn’t move as the vicious man punched him repeatedly in the stomach while digging his teeth deeply into his neck. He was being attacked from multiple angles, and Nines screamed out in terror when the High Priest pulled away from the bite, and wrapped a hand around the back of his neck. Before he knew it, Nines found himself flying through the air. His mind registered that as he’d been trying to recover from the ferocious bite, the High Priest had kicked him into the air while rolling forward to duck out of the way of a punch Nines had aimed for him. Gracefully, the man used all the power in his legs to shove Nines away from himself while Nines soared above his head.

Sailing through the air, Nines eventually made contact with a heavy crate, and he bashed his head against it. His entire body broke right through it afterwards, and he landed violently and heavily onto his back. The world spun around him as his vision and mind went cloudy and foggy as dust and broken wood exploded and gathered around his fall.

“Bravo! Bravo!!” Clapping echoed from above, and the rest of the men glared up. Alejandro was clapping enthusiastically for the High Priest, and he sighed happily, “Well done, Tėvas!” he cried out in encouragement, “you’ve always been the strongest of us all!”

The High Priest got to his feet, sword already aimed and pointed at Nines again. “Is that the best you had to offer, my worthy opponent?” he chuckled and shook his head, wiping his lips of any thirium leaking and dripping down from his mouth and chin. “Such a disappointment…”

Squirming in anger, Marshall roared out loud explosively, “I can’t take this shit anymore!” he tore away towards an old pipe resting in an open crate, and he grabbed it tightly. Screaming in rage, he ran right for the High Priest, the pipe held high. Before he could bring it down on the High Priest’s head, the man moved and ducked, and he bashed Marshall over the head with his sword. The tall man crashed down onto his chest, but he wasn’t giving up. Marshall was on his feet once more, and his courage had inspired Justin to even attack. The Asian man grabbed a mini stun gun he’d hidden away in his vest pocket, and as he ran forth at the High Priest with Marshall, the man merely kicked back into the air as he created some distance between their bodies.

Before Justin could effectively use the stun gun, the High Priest kicked it right out of his hands. That didn’t stop Justin from trying to take the High Priest down with his hands and arms. Marshall was trying to swing again at the vicious man as well, but the High Priest swiftly and effortlessly blocked the wrench with the side of his sabre, holding his arm outstretched strongly forward like a thick tree branch. As Marshall struggled to dislodge the rusty pipe from beneath the sabre, Justin headbutted the High Priest when he bound upwards on his legs with enough strength.

Justin’s head made contact with the High Priest’s temple, but it didn’t do so much as really even stun the monster. It infuriated the man instead, and he sliced through Marshall’s right-hand sleeve in a fit of retaliation. Thankfully, the man snuck his arm back away in time, otherwise more than cloth and fabric would’ve been cut away. While Marshall had the temporary distraction, the High Priest then turned his sabre on Justin, and he nearly buried it into the shorter man’s side. Had Justin not rolled out of the way in time, he’d have been dead.

As Alejandro clapped on, Justin was enraged. He leapt up past Marshall taking the High Priest on, and he grabbed onto a rope and pulley that had been one of many dangling from hooks in the ceiling. Using the force and strength of his upper body, Justin swung up through the air and landed on his feet right in front of Alejandro. A discarded wrench resting on a small radiator had been close to them, and Justin dove for it. No sooner had he grabbed it and been prepared to bash it into Alejandro’s face, when the High Priest kicked Marshall out of his way and fled up the steps towards them.

“Get out of my way!!” he roared, gripping Justin by the back of his tactical vest, and he hurled the man away as hard as he could. Justin was thrown mercilessly down the steps, and he rammed into Marshall just when the taller male got to his feet.

Alejandro fled from the scene, and as the High Priest turned back to head down to where Justin and Marshall were, a long hunting knife was thrown at him like a dart. The High Priest ducked, however, and the tip of the knife buried itself into the wall right by his nose. As the High Priest glared ahead, Phil barreled into him viciously.

Phil delivered punches and kicks relentlessly, but the High Priest merely laughed as he barely even moved a few inches. Since he hadn’t been affected by the onslaught of violent blows, Phil stopped attacking the man in shock. As he stared up with wide eyes at the High Priest, the man kneed the android in the nose, and he collapsed onto his chest roughly down on the floor.

“Get up,” the High Priest grabbed Phil by the back of the neck, and he scowled into his eyes when they were at face-level. “Another rabid mutt?” he snickered, pulling his sabre back as he prepared to bury it into Phil, “very well, I’ll put you in your proper place…”

At the very last minute, Marshall swung the pipe he was still holding onto at the High Priest’s legs, and the man growled in a ghastly way for being interrupted. Quick as a flash, before Marshall could deliver a fatal blow to the man’s back, the High Priest lifted his right leg, and he slammed it down powerfully over the length of the pipe. Both it and Marshall’s arm came crashing down beneath the potent weight of the High Priest’s clever way of blocking the attack, and Marshall was stunned.

“Your reflexes—” before he could finish his sentence, the pipe was kicked away from him.

Kicking Marshall in the sternum, Il Tėvas sighed, “You’re no match for me, you idiot!”

Putting up a fight, Marshall tried overpowering the High Priest with high kicks and swift punches, but the other man seemed to read right through them. He used both the black handle of his sabre to block the beatings and blows, as well as counterattacking them with his own swift kicking movements. Anytime Marshall even turned an arm or leg about, the High Priest blocked it by beating him down and using both his elbows to slam repeatedly against the tall man’s limbs.

Rising to his feet, Phil tried to attack the coldblooded High Priest from behind by leaping onto him and wrapping an arm around his neck. Phil was easily overpowered in one fluid motion as the murderous man swung his shoulders and body forward and threw Phil off his back swiftly before kicking Marshall violently in the chest.

Once Marshall was out of his way, the High Priest straightened up Phil by picking him up off the floor. “You shouldn’t have interfered,” he growled once he lowered him to his feet. In the blink of an eye, the powerful force of the High Priest’s leg met with Phil’s upper torso again, and the raven-haired android was kicked back so hard, that he flew off the top of the railing and down over a large wagon. The High Priest threw himself over the railing after Phil, and as he soared down, he slammed the top of his fist into Phil’s chest. The blow had been so deadly and rough that the wagon broke, and they crashed and sank right through the wood. It shattered into many pieces, and Phil’s LED light blinked off as his eyelids closed.

Regaining stamina, Nines flew out from beneath the broken carts and crates he’d been thrown into. He swayed a little as his vision blurred and flashed, but his system alerts told him he was still fine. As he inched towards the High Priest, the other man sensed his presence, and he turned around and laughed.

“Impressive, robot,” he snickered as he twirled his sabre a few times in the air in large swooping circles, “but you shouldn’t force yourself…”

Nines leapt through the air, flipping ahead as he kicked violently forward. His foot connected with the High Priest’s right shoulder, and the man tumbled back a few steps. As his back was now turned to Justin, the short male was stirring on the floor. He rose up to rush to the aid of his superior, and he threw himself on top of the High Priest’s back.

Wrapping his arms and legs around him to choke him out, it provided a brief distraction. Nines took advantage of that opportunity, and he swiped the sword the High Priest had given him off the floor. Thrusting it forward at the man while Justin tried holding him back, Nines nearly slashed his way into the High Priest’s neck, but the man then whirled around so quickly it was unbelievable. He shoved Justin off his back, and he wrapped a thick arm around his throat. Justin struggled in his grip, and as Nines brought his blade down, it was knocked back by the High Priest’s strong sabre.

While holding tightly onto Justin, the High Priest blocked the blows Nines was trying to deliver again. How it was possible that this mere man was able to fight two people at once made Nines cower back in fear. A third man was soon added to the mix, as Phil regained consciousness and brandished his hunting knife sharply at the High Priest.

His addition to the assault only infuriated the High Priest, and he merely growled as he simultaneously kicked back and blocked their blows one by one. “Learn your place!!” he snapped irritably towards Phil, but the determined android merely charged on. When the group fighting against the murderous gang leader refused to back down and give up, the High Priest suddenly let go of Justin. Leaping up into the air, he pivoted off his right foot, then, he twirled and gained momentum up in the air high above Nines’ head. He aimed directly for Phil’s chest, and he landed a brutal kick in the center of the android’s broad sternum. It definitely knocked him back for a moment, but in an instant, he’d recovered and was charging at the High Priest once again.

Trying to coordinate their attacks, Nines and Phil drew back, trying to unleash powerful, charged attacks unto the High Priest, but they were soon stopped when the High Priest drew his right hand back, held his deadly weapon high above his head, and swung it around his shoulder in one large swoop.

“GO TO HELL!!!!!!!!!” As the blade ate through the air in the large circular motion guided by the High Priest’s hand, it was swung with such a vehement, potent force, that a sudden explosion of an orange-yellow flame burst forth from the tip of the sword.

It was unlike anything any one of them had been prepared for, and Nines, Phil, and Marshall fell back from the dangerous flames immediately. The latter had been trying to sneak up on the High Priest, but it was useless. As the long range of the fire burned through the air above their heads, it caught Marshall by surprise, and he was blown back violently a few feet. Ashes fell around him as bits of his dark clothing had been slightly singed, but thankfully, he hadn’t been burned or harmed in any other way.

Nines took a moment to try and recover, but he knew he didn’t have much time. Fighting Il Tėvas had been nothing like fighting Lady Irina; the High Priest had trick weapons, and a lot of surprises up his sleeve that Nines hadn’t been expecting in the slightest. Yes, this was an entirely new species of creature altogether. Il Tėvas was truly a formidable, ruthless, coldblooded foe, and Nines doubted he would ever face an opponent as cruel ever again.

As disturbing as this all was to him, however, he just knew he couldn’t let his thoughts wander for too long, for if they did, surely the cruel monster would take advantage of it.

Just as Justin had tried initiating another attack in midair, the High Priest snatched out a hand and caught him by the throat. Warding off Marshall and Phil when they rushed in to protect Justin, the fire-blade swung in the air, and a warning flame danced before their eyes. Still clinging onto Justin mightily, the High Priest swiftly hoisted the shorter male up over his shoulders, and as he swung in a half-circle, he threw Justin straight into Phil, knocking them both back violently onto the floor. Before Nines could make the final move required to cut open the High Priest’s neck, the man was upon him instantly. He moved at an inhuman speed that Nines-in his current state-had been unable to anticipate. Nines was bashed in the face by the handle of the sabre, and as he flew back, the High Priest kicked up into the air. He was momentarily airborne, and he slammed his strong feet cruelly into Nines’ sternum until the android had been knocked back against the broken piles of crates, boxes, barrels, and old furniture stacked behind them.

Nines was once again out cold, and piles of old furniture crashed down over him, burying him beneath much like a strong, powerful avalanche.

And finally, as Marshall attempted one last time to bring the High Priest down, he was brutally beaten over the back of his neck with the blunt end of the sword. His eyes rolled into the back of his head, his knees caved in, and he collapsed out cold on the floor.

The High Priest clicked his tongue in distaste, “You really can’t even take me down with the help of three other men?” he sighed as he rolled his eyes, “this truly can’t be the end of our fight, can it?”

Justin had recovered from his painful fall, and he screamed out in terror once he saw Phil lying next to him on the floor unconsciously. Channeling all his hatred and rage at the High Priest, Justin wrapped his arms around the man’s waist and tried bringing him down. A powerful knock on the top of the head was all he received, however, and it sent him limply down on his chest and stomach.

Once Justin, Phil, and Marshall had been knocked out and lying flatly about the storage room, the High Priest snickered as he held his sword out. “That’s all you had for me?” he laughed as he placed his sabre back in its rightful place by his side, “how weak the lot of you are…”

Surveying the damage and the injured men, the High Priest inched back up the steps as one final explosion went off and shook all walls and the floor. He exited from a door hidden away in the shadows, thinking he’d cleverly disposed of everyone.

He failed to see Nines pushing away bits of the broken crate he’d landed into, the sword he’d been given shattered and broke in half. There was no way he was going to be using it, but that didn’t stop him from still wanting to try to take the son of a bitch High Priest down.

He still had a good fight left in him.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Gavin heard the door to his prison opening again, and this time, it was the High Priest himself who dragged him gently out of the room. When had the vicious, insane monster returned? Where had he even gone to? The questions spun around like a horrible cycle in Gavin’s mind, and as he stared up at the High Priest, he noticed that the man was slightly injured…it appeared as though he’d been in a fight of some sorts.

_“Oh my god, please, let Nines be okay, please god…please!!!”_

As he worried for his husband’s safety, Gavin felt bits of the Slo-Freeze gradually dissipating from his system. He felt a little more control over his legs and body, but he was still pretty numb from the waist-down. The High Priest looped Gavin’s arms around his neck and shoulder, smiling at him as he helped Gavin exit the room, where he was brought to a large main room that was a guest room. It held a large indoor pool off to the left-hand side, a giant King-sized bed on the right, and more lavish furniture all around. It indeed was fit for a King, but Gavin saw no King as he glared at the High Priest.

As the man set him back down onto a chair, a loud gunshot went off somewhere in the distance. Gavin glanced up, but he saw a door down the long hallway that had been bolted shut tightly.

“Don’t even bother screaming,” the High Priest cooed down at him, and he curled a finger around Gavin’s chin, “no one will hear you anyway…or perhaps,” he chuckled warmly, and it made Gavin’s ears burn just hearing it, “…perhaps you want that ‘husband’ of yours to come to your aid?” A finger stroked its way along his jaw, and then over to his neck, leaving feelings of disgust pooling deeply within Gavin as the High Priest sighed. “It seems that the one you were relying on to protect you so dearly couldn’t even do that…how fleetingly we place our trust in others, when they never can live up to our expectations…”

 _“He knows about Nines?? How…?”_ Hoping this knowledge wouldn’t put Nines in danger, Gavin felt his heart constricting in his chest as he panicked and tried pushing horrific scenes of Nines being caught and tortured out of his mind.

Another door behind Gavin opened up, and high heeled feet clicked on the floor as they approached. “What’re you doing, Nojus?!” Irina’s voice was loud and shrill, indicating that she was panicking.

The ceiling above trembled, as if a herd of elephants were stomping around above. The lights flickered, and then debris and dust caved down on their heads.

Irina waved a hand up, “We have to leave, Nojus!”

He turned, scowling at her, “And where do you think you want to leave to in such a hurry? Hmm? We haven’t completed our work, Irina.”

“FUCK THE WORK!” she snapped, “to hell with it, Nojus! We will die if we stay here!”

He grabbed her arm, suddenly, fingers digging into her bare flesh. “I’m not through here, Irina,” he growled maliciously, “and you agreed to sacrifice yourself for me, for the cause, and for the future!” he gave her a mighty shove, pushing her back towards the door she’d snuck in from. He glowered at her again, slowly gazing back at Gavin before himself. “Did I not stress to you how important it was to get rid of the lying, snooping Detective and his spouse before they interrupted and ruined our life’s work? Hmm?!”

She sputtered at him, but was unable to argue. The High Priest then grabbed Gavin’s chair, and he tugged it backwards towards a wall. The front and center of the room had been cleared, as if a horrible fight was going to happen, but before Irina or the High Priest could say anything, more explosions went off in the building.

It apparently frightened Irina too much. Waving a hand dismissively at her husband, she spat out quickly, “To hell with you, Nojus!”

He growled at her, but pointed out the door she’d once entered from. She left, slamming it as she screamed in Portuguese, her voice dying down slowly as she moved away from the door.

A finger ran down Gavin’s cheek, and he stared up weakly at the High Priest. He was met with a cruel glare. “Stay right here…” he moved backwards, disappearing out through the back of the room, perhaps to grab his weapons and arm himself, Gavin supposed.

Once Gavin was alone, he looked to the left, and then at the right, and he saw a small glass vase resting on a table behind him. It was an opportunity awaiting. Gavin wasted no time in shifting his weight from side to side, and after heaving back and forth violently, his chair crashed down to the floor, but the legs knocked against the table. It swung and jolted about, eventually toppling down. It brought the glass vase down with it, and it smashed on the tiled floor into many pieces.

He only needed one, however, and Gavin groaned as he forced his palm to open up slowly. His fingers weighed a ton, but he moved them until he grasped at one shard of glass. The High Priest’s footsteps echoed about in the other room, and Gavin snuck the shard of glass inside his palm, pushing it down into his sweater sleeve as he breathed heavily from the strenuous effort he put into every move.

He still needed to get out while he could! As Gavin wriggled and crawled along on his chest, he felt the tiles digging into his stomach and abdomen, seeping into his muscles and organs pure coldness. Wincing, he wriggled and crawled all the way over to where the High Priest had gone, and he waited before the door. Still on the floor, Gavin pushed forward with his elbow, and as a blast went off above him, he pressed his elbow against the door.

Luckily, it hadn’t been locked, and as he pushed it open ajar, he saw the High Priest arming himself with small knives he’d pulled out of a briefcase that was resting on a large, deep green sofa. He reached under the bed, then, but as he bent down, the door adjacent to the room he was in opened, and Gavin saw that it was a bathroom. The lights within it shut off, suddenly, and Alejandro was approaching the High Priest steadily…

Alejandro paused before the High Priest’s back, and the man whipped around aggressively. He sighed when he was face-to-face with Alejandro. “Ti ho detto di nascondermi,” he whispered in Italian.

Frowning, Gavin wished he knew what they were saying, but he only listened in silence as he held onto his glass shard tightly.

Alejandro looked down sadly at the weapons the High Priest had armed himself with. “Sono preoccupato per te,” he poured forth in Italian, and he cried out in pain as he wrapped his arms around the High Priest’s neck.

“Nojus!” he cried out desperately, and as Gavin watched in awe, the High Priest embraced Alejandro in return. They clung to each other tightly, and the High Priest ran his hands and fingers through Alejandro’s hair, slightly messing it up as he breathed against the smaller male.

“Non avere paura, Alejandro,” the High Priest softly breathed out to him as he cradled Alejandro’s skull in a hand. The younger male leaned back in his arms, and he sniffled sadly as he looked into the High Priest’s eyes.

He gasped, and then chuckled, “Ahh, c’è quel sorriso che volevo vedere…”

As Gavin watched in shock, the High Priest grabbed Alejandro’s face in his hands, and he planted his lips firmly over the younger man’s. He feverishly and passionately kissed Alejandro, who was frozen for a brief moment. However, in an instant, his eyes snapped shut, and it wasn’t long before his hands wove around the High Priest’s neck. He kissed him back just as passionately, and as they were getting lost in the frenzied, heated kiss, another connecting door leading into the area Gavin had never seen burst open, and Irina once again ran inside the room.

“Nojus! There’s hardly anyone left—” she scoffed when she saw the couple reluctantly breaking away from each other. Holding her head up, she placed her hands on her hips, a dark leather jacket already on her upper body, indicating that she was planning on escaping.

“Even in times like this, Nojus,” she hissed spitefully when she saw Alejandro clinging onto her husband’s shirt, “you choose him over me, why?”

Gavin frowned in confusion. Just what was going on here?!? It was clear that the High Priest was married to Irina, but who was Alejandro, and where did he fit in all this? Gavin set his detective brain’s gears to work as he assessed the situation quietly and quickly. As he stared at the younger male, his eyes suddenly caught an expensive wedding ring on his left-hand ring finger…

The High Priest sighed in exasperation as he turned to face Irina. “Why must you always do this, Irina?” he asked calmly, though his voice dropped an octave, “I told you; I love you both, and Alejandro is my husband as much as you are my wife.”

The woman was exhibiting rage and jealousy unlike any Gavin had ever witnessed. She tossed her long hair over her shoulders as she sneered at Alejandro. “Yes, we all may have an agreement,” she began in a waspish, short tone, “yet I can’t help but feel you’ve always been closer to him, so don’t you dare lie to my face, Nojus!” she snapped viciously, pain evident in her eyes and face as she glared sternly at her husband and his lover. “How can you love him so much? _How_???!”

Staring at her outstretched finger pointing at him in an accusatory manner, the High Priest gently turned his nose up at her, as if she were a vile creature lowly and beneath him. “I don’t have time for this right now, Irina,” he spat coldly, “either you will join me in the last stand, or you won’t; it’s the ultimate test to prove your loyalty to the cause.”

She laughed as she shook her head in disbelief, “Fuck you, Nojus,” she turned back to the secret passage she’d entered from, “I gave my EVERYTHING for you, but you choose your husband over your wife...” though she seemed unable to believe it and cope with it, she held back on her emotions and glared heatedly at her husband. Lady Irina backed away from him as she spat, “Fuck you!” The door slammed, and she was gone.

Alejandro’s cheeks were flushed pink, and he started stammering.

“Shhhh,” the High Priest held him in his arms, momentarily forgetting his weapons strewn about on the sofa before himself. “Let her go,” he stated softly, kissing the top of Alejandro’s head, “as long as I have you, I don’t need anything or anyone else, Alejandro…”

As Alejandro sniffled and wiped his eyes, he suddenly turned to the doorway, and he gasped in fear when he saw Gavin peeking in at them. “NOJUS!” he pointed at Gavin in fright, and the High Priest whipped around to face Gavin.

 _“FUCK!!!”_ Trying to wriggle away, Gavin scrambled to the side, still incapable of standing up on his own.

“Stay here!” the High Priest instructed his husband, running full speed towards Gavin. He caught up to the detective in no time, and as he yanked him up by his sweater collar, he snarled down into his face menacingly.

“I tried to be kind and patient, Detective,” he stated with mild irritation in his voice, “but you left me with no choice…you’ll be the first to die, I’m afraid.” As he pulled out a long blade, Gavin’s eyes widened, and he clung tightly onto his glass shard.

As the High Priest leaned into him, Gavin slid his hand up, aiming for his neck. At the very last minute, however, as a blast went off somewhere outside the room, the High Priest turned his head up to stare about, and Gavin’s hand slinked up. The glass shard stabbed through the High Priest’s left cheek, and he screamed as he let Gavin go immediately. Gavin fell onto the hard floor in a dull heap, and as pain throbbed and seeped up into his body, he pushed through it, making his way back towards the front door of the bedroom.

Behind him, the High Priest spat out a stream of blood, but as he glared down at Gavin, he reached up with a hand, and he shut his eyes as he braced himself for more pain. He slid out the glass shard from within his cheek, and he screamed in raw agony as he trembled and spat out more blood. Alejandro was at his side immediately, staring at his wound in fear and concern as he held a hand up to it.

He gasped in fright, “You’re bleeding terribly!! Nojus, let me—”

The High Priest roared as he pointed back at the room that held all their weapons, “Alejandro,” he spat out in a slurred manner, “arm yourself with a weapon, and leave here at once!” he spat out more blood, nearly falling down in pain.

As Alejandro obeyed him and ran out through the back door of their large room, the High Priest glared at Gavin with bloodthirsty red eyes, watching as the man reached forward and tried getting up by holding onto furniture around himself. He let out a sinister laugh as he touched his open wound. “È solo una ferita di carne, haha…”

His laughter made Gavin’s blood run cold, and he nearly froze up just from the way it sent shivers up and down his spine so horribly. He urged himself to press on, however, and he wormed his way along the floor.

“You can crawl away all you like, Detective; it entices me like you can’t imagine,” the High Priest growled, and he slumped against a wall, a hand flying up against the light switch. He turned off all the lights in the room, and since there were no windows about, everything was suddenly pitch black. Gavin slapped a hand over his mouth, trying not to make a sound as he hurriedly rolled himself over and hid beneath a large table in the hall.

A deep rumble of a chuckle escaped the High Priest’s lips, and as the blood that had gushed forth from his mouth dripped onto the tiled floor, he shifted and moved his feet about as he growled out, “We’re outnumbered many against one, but still,” he snickered viciously, “I love the odds...”

Gavin closed his eyes, once again hoping and praying that Nines was going to come for him soon. He didn’t know how much longer he could hide out, but he was going to put up as much of a fight as the High Priest was willing to give.

Either way, one of them was going to end up dying tonight.

 

* * *

 

The entire fight with the High Priest summarized in gifs, I guess.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before anyone asks, yes, the High Priest is bisexual and he is in a polygamous marriage.


	51. Destroyer of the Universe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So apparently, the High Priest uses a lot of sexually-charged words when pissed. 
> 
> *WARNING! GORE AND FOUL LANGUAGE*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Italian and Lithuanian translations (loosely) : 
> 
> Una spina nel mio fianco= A thorn in my side  
> L’ambasciatrice della novella del Signore= I'm the new Ambassador of the Lord  
> Heretikai bus nubausti= Heretics will be punished  
> Il mio amore= My love  
> Puttana = Whore  
> Finisce qui, amore mio= It ends here, my love  
> È finite= It's over/finished

Gavin held his breath as he shifted from beneath the table over to under the King-sized bed. The High Priest’s black socked feet slid about noiselessly, and he suddenly seemed like the apex predator as he trapped Gavin in his territory.

“Una spina nel mio fianco,” a demonic hiss hit his ears, and Gavin sensed the High Priest was somewhere close by. He kept his mouth shut as he pressed his hand against it tightly, trying to not even let out tiny breaths as the High Priest searched for him. It was almost as if the man could see in the dark; he pushed around the furniture deftly and carefully, searching around and beneath it as he whispered in both Italian and English.

It really seemed he was driven mad by the last outburst from Gavin, and he twitched and groaned in pain sometimes, still nursing his wound as he slinked about in the darkness, searching for Gavin.

“L’ambasciatrice della novella del Signore!” he growled, sounding much like a demonic beast rather than a man as he kicked at a wall when he couldn’t find Gavin beneath some desks and chairs. “You fucking cock slut!!” he roared, and a loud BANG went off. Gavin assumed it was either Irina or Alejandro defending themselves, but he didn’t care either way as he crept further beneath the bed.

“Wretched dick fuck, I’ll snatch the life right out of you…”

It wasn’t safe under the bed; the High Priest was sniffing about like a blood hound. “I can smell you,” he purred, laughing when Gavin slid out and crept behind a large dresser. He was still hidden, and thankfully, he felt blood flowing nicely and evenly through his limbs. He wriggled and moved his fingers and toes; grateful he had his strength and control back. Perhaps now he stood a chance…

He still had to wait for the perfect opportunity. The High Priest was holding onto his knife, still, and as he blinked around the room, he followed Gavin’s trail over to the dark dresser. He slammed a hand down over top of it, sniffing at the air sharply. He growled when he stared at the floor, and then bent forward a little, as if trying to peer under it. When he was distracted long enough, Gavin slammed forward into the heavy dresser. It heaved ahead, bashing into the High Priest’s forehead, and it sent him flying backwards. The knife clattered and fell down somewhere along the floors, but it was impossible to see without much light. Gavin didn’t want to feel his way along the floors for it, but he was doing so anyway as he crawled about on his knees.

“Puttana! Whore!!”

Ignoring the dangerous, threatening roars and growls escaping the High Priest’s throat, Gavin followed his ears as he remembered the knife sliding around somewhere to the right…his knuckles touched it! Realizing he’d grazed it with his skin, he leapt to the right, fumbling in the darkness for it. When he had it tightly in his hand, he turned back around, he sliced away at the air, blindly attacking nothing while his free hand waved in the air, desperately to grab at anything solid. Suddenly, his fingers snagged something, and Gavin felt what was more than likely the necklace the High Priest was wearing.

Wanting to choke the life out of the man, Gavin yanked hard on the chain supporting the serpent emblem. He heard the High Priest coughing when his fingers closed and curled around the chain, and as Gavin yanked and tugged on it with all his might, he felt another warm body drawing right up against his. He definitely had the man in his grip, and as he slammed down harder on the chain, he suddenly felt the High Priest shifting, and then he felt what was likely either an elbow or a kneecap slamming into his ribs.

Having to momentarily let go of the necklace and chain, Gavin instead relied on the knife, and he let it cut through the air in a manner he hoped would be good enough to do serious damage to the High Priest. All he could do was swing about crazily, but that had to be the best method to keep the insane man away from him.

He’d been hoping to land a hit somewhere, but a fist flew forward and slammed into his jaw. Gavin flew backwards, but his fingers stubbornly refused to let go of the knife.

The High Priest was laughing and cackling maniacally, enjoying himself as he hissed out coldly and cruelly. “Heretikai bus nubausti,” he snapped in Lithuanian, and Gavin could hardly get the noise of the cruel hiss out of his ears before he felt fingers upon the back of his neck.

His fight or flight instincts kicked in, and he whirled around like a tornado. He held up the blade, steadying it before the High Priest’s face, but the man had already pulled out another concealed handgun. It went off loudly behind Gavin’s head, and he ducked down low before bringing his arms up and shoving the edge of the blade against the muzzle of the gun. Gavin tried holding his own, but the High Priest bore his weight down on the gun, using his strong, board chest to push back against Gavin’s arms.

Not wanting to let go, Gavin pushed harder, but when he tried using all his force to bash the gun against the High Priest’s nose, the man knocked the knife out of his hands. It went flying upwards into the ceiling, and before Gavin could try to catch it as it fell back down, the High Priest raised his right leg, and kneed Gavin roughly in the sternum. As he coughed and sputtered, trying to get over the pain and momentary shock, the slick man spun around, and then delivered a brutal high kick to Gavin’s solar plexus. Gavin lost all the balance he’d just regained, and he stumbled over his own feet as he sailed backwards and landed roughly against the wall. Yet again, he’d had the wind knocked out of him, and this time, he also had no weapon to defend himself.

Now that he had been rendered even more powerless than before, Gavin really began panicking as the High Priest held a hand up to his injured cheek and growled out in pain. He didn’t have much time; he had to stay still, not make any sounds, and try to find another hiding place before the dangerous man located him.

Gavin slunk against the wall, pressing his back and shoulders flatly against it as he held his breath. He had to transform himself into a ‘statue’ as much as possible, now, as the hallway leading up to the barred door wasn’t too far off from what his photographic memory recalled before the lights had been shut off. He could still make it if he shimmied along the wall silently…

Apparently, the High Priest seemed to be able to somehow ‘read’ Gavin’s mind; he anticipated the reason why Gavin had gone silent suddenly, and he snickered as he spat more drops of blood down to the floor. “Haha, I heard your thoughts, slut…”

Hoping it was all just a bluff, Gavin moved towards the left, desperately just letting his hands hover along the walls. If he could even get his hands on a small cup or plate to bash the man in the skull, it’d buy him the time he so desperately needed. All he could feel however were walls, and he repressed and held back cries of terror as he stretched his arms out and tiptoed along the walls. He was careful not to let his boots hit the baseboards to give off sounds as the High Priest knocked into more furniture and kicked them back.

“Where are you!?!” he snapped, and Gavin bit down hard on his tongue as he tiptoed left, inching closer and closer. His rib cage gently rubbed against something rough, and it made a small ‘clank’ sound. Gavin’s eyes widened as he stretched his hands, reaching for whatever it was. He could hardly make it out, but as he felt along it, he assumed it had to be a crowbar or a wrench…oh how he hoped!!

Fingers wrapping around it, Gavin’s heart raced, and he could feel sweat and tears running down his forehead, cheeks, back, and neck. He was shaking and shivering from fear, and he braced himself as he slowly lifted the crowbar off the table he’d likely knocked into.

The High Priest snarled, and it was as if time had slowed down, almost as if they were both under leagues of water deep in the ocean. “What are you—”

Suddenly, the room was filled with light. The back door had been yanked open by Alejandro…he poked his head inside, and as soon as the High Priest had turned around to face him, Gavin held up the crowbar. He screamed as he swung it high into the air, and flung it as far and as hard as he could right into the jaw of the High Priest. The man crashed down to the floor, still wielding the long knife he’d been meaning to use on Gavin.

With the High Priest down, Alejandro shrieked, holding his machine gun down at his side while he dashed ahead to attend to his husband’s injuries. He cradled the High Priest’s head and face in his hands as he tried gathering up the blood that was still pouring out of his fresh wound while sobbing hysterically. “Il mio amore!” he cried out while letting the High Priest’s body slump into his arms and into his lap.

As blood trickled from the High Priest’s lips uncontrollably like a wave, Alejandro looked up in terror at Gavin. His lips curled back as he screamed out, “YOU DID THIS TO HIM!!!”

Before Gavin could utter a single word, a large BANG echoed before them all. The door had been shattered and broken directly in two, as if someone had taken an ax to it and chopped it down. It had likely been some kind of explosive, Gavin wagered, and he saw a long leg kicking the rest of the wood down as voice rang out through the dust and wood collapsing everywhere.

The rest of the room had been flooded with light from the halls, finally, and Gavin squinted, holding his arms up as another explosion went off. It got rid of the rest of the door and its bars, effectively breaking a way out of the nightmare and prison for him. As Gavin continuously tried peering through the bits of wood and rubble still in his way, he finally saw a red LED light, and sharp blue eyes…

“Nines!!” he cried out in relief, “I’m here!!”

“GAVIN!”

As Nines pushed his way inside, scrambling over broken furniture and piles of plaster, wood, drywall, and other things, Gavin raced ahead towards him. It was a most joyful reunion, but before Nines could gather his husband to his chest, he sensed something was wrong. Peering over Gavin’s shoulders, he saw Alejandro raising his machine gun with one hand, while the other cradled his injured husband.

Reading through the next movements accurately, Nines grabbed Gavin, threw him down to the floor, and he quickly pulled out his own gun. He fired four bullets forward directly into Alejandro’s chest, and the young man screamed in shock as he dropped the machine gun.

Seeing his husband being shot at, the High Priest screamed in resolute anger. He glared at Nines as the android approached, then took to struggling slightly while he grabbed Alejandro’s hand and kissed the back of it. Tears poured all over the younger man’s skin as blood trickled down his shirt, turning the white of it a deep red, now. The High Priest reached up with a trembling hand, and he dabbed away at the blood, bringing it over to his face as he roared out in anger.

Holding up his bloodied hand before Nines, he screamed out in pure rage, “You killed the only person I ever cared for and loved!!” he groaned in despair as he wailed up into the thick stench of death brewing between them, “you took him from me! I’ll kill you…I’ll—”

Nines raised his gun higher, “I should kill you too, you—”

“NO!” Gavin pressed a hand on the arm that held the gun, and Nines sputtered in shock at Gavin, while the High Priest coughed and bled out into the lap of his husband.

Nines’ jaw dropped when Gavin pushed the gun down. “Gavin?! Are you crazy?!” he nodded over at the High Priest without looking at him, “this man tried to kill you!!”

“Nines,” Gavin breathed out painfully, his body suddenly reminding him of his age, and of the fact that he’d had the shit beaten out of him. He winced as he pressed a hand gently against his ribs, and Nines threw him a worried look. It made Gavin’s heart ache, and he held out a hand to try and assure Nines he was fine. “Please,” he whispered painfully with a tiny groan, “I’ll be alright, but we need the High Priest alive!”

Lowering the gun, Nines turned to attend Gavin’s wounds, and as a result, he missed how Alejandro’s fingers twitched slightly, and his chest moved in and out…

The High Priest grinned, teeth pink and stained with blood as he coughed. “Finisce qui, amore mio…” he whispered, and Nines caught it at the last minute.

He snapped at them, “Silence!!”

Suddenly, Alejandro gave out a mighty roar, and he grabbed his machine gun once again. Instead of pointing it at Nines or Gavin, however, he pointed it beneath his chin, and his finger slammed down over the trigger. At once, a fresh spray of deep red splattered against the walls, and as Nines let go of Gavin to hurry forward at them, the High Priest laughed as his fingers grabbed the knife that he’d tried to use on Gavin, now lying a few inches away from himself.

Cackling, he smiled at Nines as he held the knife boldly against his neck. It made Nines freeze up, and Gavin screamed in anger and fear.

“DON’T DO IT! DROP THE KNIFE, NOW!!!!”

A cold laugh was their response. “È finite.” The High Priest shook his head once, and with surprising amounts of speed, he buried the knife deep within his own chest, aiming right for the heart. It was a killing blow, and he twisted it and turned it, even when Nines collapsed before him, trying to wrap a hand around the High Priest’s so he could yank the knife out of his heart. It was no use, though; the man was already dead. It was such an extreme way to die, and Gavin nearly vomited from the sight of it as blood gushed out from the High Priest’s chest, though it made his red shirt seem almost black, now. It seeped everywhere, and pooled beneath his body and his lover’s, and as Gavin held out a hand to steady himself before he collapsed, he found himself being held and cradled against a chest.

Holding him gently, Nines placed Gavin onto the edge of the bed in the room, and Gavin shook violently as he fought hard to look away from the horrific scene before himself. “Why…wh-why d-did he do th-that?”

Nines stared at the dead bodies, and a scowl was upon his face instantly. “Quid pro quo, Gavin,” his voice poured out like frozen honey, likely due to the fact that he was addressing Gavin, but also emotionally invested in his malice and hatred for the High Priest, “in his mind, we took his heart and purpose in life, and thus, he took his own away…this entire disaster is his doing, and the very purpose of his epitaph.”

“He fuckin’ killed himself so we can’t solve the case and charge him,” Gavin snapped, placing a hand on Nines’ back for support as he inched closely behind him, “that’s all it is; nothing more! Fucking son of a bitch.” His eyes then fell on Nines’ neck, and he saw thirium pooling and staining his clothing. Worried, he let his hand graze over the wound, “What happened?”

Nines stared down at his blood and sighed, “We fought; he bit me…” tearing his eyes away from the corpse of the High Priest, Nines leaned back, “he was one of the most challenging foes I’ve ever come across, though he played dirty tricks on everyone.”

Voices suddenly cried out, and Gavin heard the crunching of boots behind himself. His mind knew it was the rest of the narcotics team, and they walked over shards of broken glass, the wood of the door, and kicked things about in their way as they cleared a path for themselves so they could join Nines and Gavin within the room.

“Sir!!” Phil cried out, LED light yellow, and then blue when he saw Nines and Gavin safe, “what’s going on—” he froze when he saw the bodies slumped against each other. Holding out a shaky finger, he murmured, “is that…is that who I think it is?”

Nines only growled, “Yes, it’s the very Devil himself.”

Phil gasped, and then covered an eye while he studied the gruesome sight before himself. “Is he…are they both dead?”

Glaring at him for asking, Nines hissed in response, “Obviously, considering how they’ve both undergone exsanguination!!!”

There was a heavy silence about in the air, and as Nines continued to glare ahead at the corpses, Marlon let out a long whistle as he also stood beside Phil, now.

“Daaaamn,” Marshall hissed out, joining them as he shook his head, “that’s brutal…” he snuck out a cigarette from his vest pocket, the sleeve gone from the attack the High Priest had unleashed unto him. As he lit the cigarette, his thick biceps flexed anytime he moved.

Nines roared at him, finally turning around before Marshall could even take a small puff. Snatching the cigarette right out of his hands, Nines threw it back outside the blasted-open door. “You imbecile!” he growled viciously, “don’t contaminate the crime scene!!”

“Sorry boss.”

Dom and Maria were next inside, and they simultaneously let out groans of disgust and revulsion when they caught sight of the corpses before them. They ignored the gruesome sights of death eventually, gathering around Gavin when they noticed his injuries.

“We’re here to help,” Dom’s concerned eyes soothed Gavin internally, while the rest of the team members who wanted to help carefully held and wrapped their arms around him as they gently pushed him out of the room. Reluctantly, Gavin exited, as he wanted nothing more than to be as far away from the hellhole he’d been trapped in. He nearly fell onto the floor outside, but he was relieved to be free at last.

The rest of the team rushed to his aid, getting out first aid kits as Gwen and Maria gently took his sweater off and assessed his wounds and injuries. Gavin groaned, pushing their hands away from his body. “I’m fine,” he reassured them, trying to be as polite as he could. He didn’t need all this attention, and he felt even worse when Nines was still in the room, glaring down at the dead bodies with a red LED light that clearly depicted how livid he was.

Noticing where Gavin was looking, a look of genuine pity and remorse fell over Gwen’s soft features. She placed a reassuring hand on Gavin’s shoulder, finally caching his attention. “Hey,” she smiled warmly when he looked at her, “it’s gonna be okay, Gavin; backup’s on the way, and the rest of the Ouroboros are either dead, or have run away.”

Justin nodded, kneeling down by Gavin as he sighed heavily, “That’s right, it’s all over, now.”

Gavin snorted, “That doesn’t comfort me, guys.”

Justin frowned, “And why not??” he then smiled proudly, “we won!!”

Resisting the urge to break down in tears of frustration, Gavin shook his head as he breathed in through clenched teeth. “We haven’t won anything, Justin!” he wheezed when he exhaled, and it felt as if his ribs were broken, suddenly. “Il Tėvas is dead, and we have no way of charging him or putting him on death row, where he deserves to be—”

“That’s not true, Gavin!” Maria gently intervened, and as Gavin looked up at her, Nines made his way back into the hall, leaning down as he studied Gavin, no doubt looking for signs of injuries or trauma.

“We caught Lady Irina,” Maria continued, “she was trying to break into one of the cars in the parking lot of the hotel, but luckily, Connor and J.D. caught up to her real fast!”

Gavin leaned his head against the wall, his lips forming into a pained smile. “Good,” he sighed out in relief, “that’s better than nothing…”

Nines stared at Gavin until the other man felt the heat of his gaze. Opening both his eyelids slowly, Gavin winced in pain, but also from the force and intensity of the way in which Nines was staring at him. It was a look that Gavin recognized as a mixture between disappointment and confusion, and Nines tilted his head at Gavin, LED light still glaring red.

“You hesitated and didn’t want him dead,” Nines pointed out accurately, “why is that, Gavin? Hmm?” his tone had taken a feral and gravelly one, as if he’d been fighting back with himself in order to restrain himself from growling at Gavin angrily.

Naturally, Nines had the right to be upset; Gavin had acted out in a way that even he himself didn’t fully comprehend. Deep within himself, he knew it’d been an emotional reaction, and it had very little to do with logic, his training, his intuition, or even any moral or ethical code and standard. Not wanting to begrudge Nines an answer, Gavin reached for his hand, and was met with no resistance, even though Nines was seething with rage.

Staying calm was key, and Gavin knew that even if he wanted to be equally as angry as Nines, he just couldn’t. He was far too exhausted, and there was no point anymore. Offering his husband a weary glance, Gavin held his head down as he stared at his blood-stained hands. When had the blood even gotten there to taint his skin??

Shaking him lightly, Nines regarded him with an utterly confused and broken stare. Nothing but pain seemed to emanate from his eyes, and it hurt Gavin to even look at him, but he maintained eye contact. “Why?” Nines questioned gently, “why did you not want me to kill Il Tėvas, Gavin?”

Gavin noticed that the rest of the team members were trying not to poke their noses into the conversation, as they’d sensed that this was meant for Gavin and Nines only. When Gwen and Maria packed the first aid kit, they got up to check on Marlon and Marshall, who in turn whispered something about Captain Fowler being on his way soon. This was better news than not having any, and Justin, Dom, and Phil soon made calls to Connor and J.D., asking about Lady Irina. Everyone was busy with something, and it just made it easier for Gavin to answer Nines. Either way, if they were listening or not, he had no shame in being honest with Nines.

“I didn’t want to kill the High Priest or even his partner,” he stated softly, “and it was because they were a bonded pair, and for a moment…” he didn’t want to complete his sentence, but he had already started it, and he didn’t want to torture Nines with silence. Licking his lips, Gavin let out a broken half-sigh, half-sob, “…for a moment, they reminded me of us…”

Scowling at him, Nines seemed revolted from the comparison. “I don’t understand how you draw those conclusions, Gavin,” he stated with a snort, “I, for one, am not a _thing_ like that monster lying not even ten feet from you!”

Gavin chuckled, “Maybe even monsters can love…”

“They were—”

“In love?” Gavin spat out randomly, “they wanted to start a life together?” he laughed, “and we took it all away from them…”

Nines reached out and pressed a hand on Gavin’s forehead. “Are you sure you’re feeling well, Gavin?” he snapped, “something’s definitely not right with you in the head if you’re going on about this.”

Gavin gently pushed his hand away, “I guess I just have a part of me that still has a conscience, Nines; that’s all.” He looked sadly at his lap, “It just didn’t feel right to take a husband from a man…”

Marlon’s heavy boots suddenly thudded behind them, stopping right by Nines. “Well, Sir,” he began, “Captain Fowler’s in the building, so we should get Gavin and everyone else out of here!”

Nines nodded up at him, “Very well,” he then turned to Gavin and pointed sharply at him while scowling, “don’t you dare feel sorry for them, Gavin,” he advised heatedly, “just because they were dedicated to one another as husbands, doesn’t mean that they were fighting for a morally superior cause.”

Marlon’s eyebrows shot up suddenly as he heard this. He pointed inside the room, “Wait, what the hell am I missing?!?” he scratched his chin, “I thought the ‘High Priest’ was married to Irina???”

Gavin sighed, not really wanting to explain it, but he was anyway, “They had an open marriage; he was married to a man and a woman, Marlon, because the High Priest was polyamorous…”

The African American man let out a stream of expletives, which made everyone else on the team laugh and snicker.

“Man!” Marlon yelled in disgust, his nose and face scrunching up, “I swear, every fucking time I turn my back, some whack-ass shit with this case comes up and I’m leaning new shit I don’t even want to know! Just when I thought I saw it all, noooo, these motherfuckers go and surprise me by upping the shits again!!” His rant didn’t end there, but he began exiting the room while his deep voice screamed out his distaste and disgust in the revelation regarding the deceased gang leader and his proclivities. 

Throwing his head back, Nines cried out, “Marshall! I think I was wrong about those cigarettes; your cousin could use one now!”

For some reason, everyone just burst out in laughter at this. As Nines helped Gavin off the floor, even he himself had to snicker, but when he saw Gavin wincing in pain, he stopped laughing. He allowed the shorter male to lean on him, and they all soon heard the loud booming voices of the rest of the Detroit Police Force, finally having arrived.

As Nines helped Gavin ascend back to the main lobby, Gavin leaned against him and whispered mysteriously into his ear, “So that was the High Priest and leader of Ouroboros, Nines…” his lips kissed Nines’ ear as he breathed out the last of his words, “…was he as formidable and equal a foe as you hoped he’d be?”

Lights shined about as emergency services flooded the building, drowning them all in a sea of panicked cries and protests as Gavin held on to Nines tightly. Captain Fowler was both relieved and curious, but he was soon shoved out of the way as everyone ran about and even some reporters even fought to snap photos and take statements from the team members.

None of the chaos and commotion stopped Gavin from asking Nines the one question he’d felt burning on the tip of his tongue since he’d been rescued.

“Are you glad to have met him, Nines?”

For once in his life, the RK900 was faced with a question he knew he’d never be able to answer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Brutal death, but I feel like someone this intense to lead and run a gang like Ouroboros would go for such an insanely over-the-top death!
> 
> R.I.P. High Priest/Nojus. It was nice knowing you...💀☠👻  
> Actually...it wasn't.


	52. Separation City

They’d managed to avoid the tabloids, the paparazzi, news outlets, and other social media sources for the rest of the day, and the following one. Nines realized Gavin hadn’t slept for a full day, and he hardly could when he’d been taken to the hospital and carefully monitored until all traces of Slo-Freeze had left his system. The doctors and nurses were shocked he hadn’t gone into cardiac arrest with how deadly the dosage was he’d been injected with, apparently, but Gavin didn’t feel ‘lucky’. After all, what were the victims who suffered from the drug’s evilly wicked grasp supposed to say?

He’d had a speedy convalescence, thankfully, but he had to answer to many questions Captain Fowler had not even a day later. Nines was furious, but he tolerated it and bore it well as he sat himself beside Gavin in Captain Fowler’s office at 7:21 in the morning. It was the very same day after Il Tėvas had been moved out of the hotel along with the body of his husband, and the world seemed to be in momentary shock. Apparently, some gruesome photos of the crime scene had already been leaked to the public, and it made Gavin feel even worse about the murders. His guilt had slowly eaten through him, and he looked beyond exhausted as he clung to a blue sweater while seated before Captain Fowler’s desk.

Their superior offered him a fresh, hot cup of coffee, and he stared on worriedly at Gavin as Nines also observed him curiously. Gavin took the coffee, though he used the mug to warm himself up as opposed to drinking the beverage. It made Captain Fowler wince, but he brushed that aside, and put on the cold façade of their boss as he got comfortable in his seat and stared on ahead at Gavin, and then at Nines.

After many minutes spent simply staring at the two of them, Captain Fowler placed his hands in his lap, fingers twitching as if they had a life and mind of their own. He stilled his twitchy movements, and he looked down into the center of his desk. “Nines, I’d like an explanation,” he said without preamble.

Nines looked up and blinked at the Police Captain in confusion, “For...?”

“The High Priest.”

“Inbreeding?” he asked with an air of innocence, and Fowler snorted. Their superior tried to glare at Nines, though his amusement at his remark ruined the effect.

“Don’t get cute, Nines; it’s unbecoming of you,” the thin line of his lips never changed, though his approval of the well-placed comment Nines used was evident in his tone.  

While Gavin sat in silence, seemingly forgotten, Fowler stared over at him. He chose to direct his line of inquiry at them both, giving his two best men equally petrifying glances.

“You know,” he began, his facial expressions suddenly neutral, “I hate that this entire case boiled down to a religious megalomaniac desiring something akin to world domination…” he followed up his thoughts with a dull snicker, “…kind of makes it all boring, doesn’t it?”

Gavin shuddered, “I don’t think it seemed boring for the victims of Slo-Freeze, sir,” Gavin wheezed out painfully, “after being forcefully put on a near lethal dose myself, I can safely tell you that its purpose was meant to completely destroy a person’s mind, character, and their will and meaning in life.”

Nines nodded, “And in turn, those victims would eventually be offered up to the Ouroboros almost like ‘slaves’, as Il Tėvas believed himself to be superior to all of them…like a god…” turning his nose up as he snarled silently, Nines continued, “Diprivan was found to be one of the more powerful agents in ‘Slo-Freeze’, and it is solely responsible for decreased levels of consciousness and it affects memories if used for prolonged periods…the High Priest was creating his own ‘mindless’ followers.”

Captain Fowler caught on and shivered in disgust. “Great,” he snorted, “that sounds completely like religion and the damage it causes when people can’t think for themselves, if I ever heard it.”

There was a pregnant pause, and Captain Fowler filled it as he whispered out to himself eerily, “Wish that damn High Priest were alive so I could wring his fucking neck by my own hands…”

When neither of his two men said anything, he sat up and nervously wrung his hands and fingers about each other. He took his time, as if digesting his thoughts and words before he closed his eyes and stared down at his own lap.

“I can’t say I’m entirely proud of you two,” he growled out deeply, and it made the office rumble a little, “but I am happy you two made it out safe, as did the rest of the team…at the end of the day,” he leaned back in his chair, and it squeaked, “…that’s what matters, and I consider it a job well done, Nines, Gavin.”

Rubbing his tired, red, dry eyes, Gavin snorted, “You don’t have to make me feel good about what I did, Captain,” he looked to Nines briefly, and then sighed, “I was responsible for the death of a young man who had his whole life ahead of him.”

Captain Fowler pointed at Gavin, his finger almost like a weapon. “Don’t you make excuses for that hellish cult, Reed,” he warned thickly as he ground his teeth together, making the muscles in his jaw clench and flex, “that ‘young man’ was already brainwashed and too far gone for therapy and rehabilitation!”

Nines nodded in agreement, “Captain Fowler’s right, Gavin,” he began softly and tenderly, as if telling Gavin it was all going to be okay, and that he needn’t be guilty. “There’s no conceivable way someone like that could fit well into our society, and it would be foolish to even entertain the idea.”

“I still played a role in his fucking murder!” Gavin cried out in despair, “that doesn’t seem to bother any of you?!?”

Captain Fowler closed his eyes, feet tapping on the floor as he stroked his chin. His brows furrowed, and he suddenly seemed so small and weak as he sat back and took in what Gavin had to say. “Gavin,” he pressed out gently, “the best way we can make a difference is by preventing something like this from ever happening again, and by god,” he slammed a hand down on his desk, “I’ll even see to it myself that we drain every last drop of intel out of Irina Zelg, and we never allow this to happen again!!”

That didn’t even come close to making him feel comfortable. Over the years as a Detective, Gavin had been involved in his fair share of witnessing horrific things. However, neither of those experiences and sights had ever scarred and traumatized him as the conclusion of the fate the High Priest of Ouroboros had. This was something he knew he was bound to remember for years, and as much as he wanted to wipe it away from his mind, he knew it just wasn’t feasible.

“Captain,” he began in a faint of a whisper, and it beckoned Captain Fowler to lean over the desk as he regarded Gavin with a worried expression eating away at his features. “I don’t know what to tell you except that had it not been for Nines,” he then gently reached over and grabbed his husband’s hand in his own, their fingers automatically curling about each other warmly, “I’d never have made it out alive.” He smiled at Nines in appreciation, and the looks and feelings were reciprocated dearly as Nines fondly gazed into Gavin’s eyes.

As they sat holding hands proudly, Captain Fowler frowned in utter confusion, and then his eyes fell to the new ring Gavin bestowed upon his finger. He nodded at it, “That’s not the ring you were given by me, Gavin,” he smirked up at them both, regarding each of them with a careful, cautionary expression, as if trying not to jump ahead to conclusions. “Nines? Gavin? Care to explain yourselves?”

Nines sat up straight, and he puffed out his chest. “I bought the ring for Gavin, Sir,” he explained truthfully.

Captain Fowler somehow managed to look shocked, yet at the same time, he also didn’t appear to be that much in surprise. He sat back, a hand over his chin as he contemplated things over in his mind, his eyes shining and glinting with some kind of an emotion neither Gavin nor Nines understood or could decipher. After a few moments, Fowler merely chuckled as he drummed his fingers along the desk.

“Gavin, Nines,” he called out their names, “are you two suggesting what I’m thinking you’re suggesting?”

Both Gavin and Nines looked at each other, and then at Fowler slowly. Nines spoke first, and he took his time as he enunciated his words clearly. “I have made my intentions clear, Sir,” he stated openly, hand still in Gavin’s, “I wish to be with Gavin.”

Captain Fowler chuckled, “But Nines,” he waved a hand in the air, “the case is over! You can relax, now, and you can apply for that divorce in less than—”

“No, Sir!” Nines cried out in protest, and Captain Fowler’s eyes went wide. His jaw fell open, and he had a look upon his face as if Nines had thrown an expletive his way.

Immediately recovering from what Nines had said, Captain Fowler clenched a hand around his chin, and then he coughed into it as he tried to clear his throat. When he found his voice, he looked down at his hands as he spoke. “Nines, are you telling me that you actually _want_ to stay married to Gavin??”

Nines nodded, “I am,” he then added, “I’ve also thought about making arrangements to plan a _proper_ wedding later in the autumn season as well…”

Fowler scratched his chin, and then his head. “Uhhh…Nines,” he let out a small chuckle, “you’re taking the wedding thing a little too seriously, wouldn’t you say?”

Nines turned his nose up at Captain Fowler, then. “I take everything seriously as far as Gavin’s involved,” he stated proudly, “and for the record, I don’t care if the entire premise of our union was initially a hoax; I proposed to Gavin myself, and I want to marry him seriously this time, and there’s nothing you can say or do that will change my mind on the matter, Captain Fowler.”

When he was finished with his ‘speech’, he turned and welcomed a smile from Gavin. The other male felt his heart aflame with love and admiration for Nines. He hadn’t expected Nines to tell the entire truth of the events to Captain Fowler, but now that he had, Gavin felt his love for Nines expanding and growing even more so. He showed his appreciation and gratitude by stroking the back of his husband’s hand delicately.

Captain Fowler cleared his throat again, lips slightly blue, as if he’d been either holding his breath, or was terribly ill and cold. “Nines!” he stammered out weakly, “you can’t just--!! But!! The…the p-policies of the Detroit Police Department state th-that co-workers can’t have relationships!! Now, you know that, Nines!!” he spat as he placed a hand over his chest, as if he was experiencing some kind of heart issues currently.

Offering a cold shrug, Nines merely stared at him nonchalantly. “I’m afraid I have to tell you that I could care less what the age-old policy states, Captain Fowler,” he inched closer to Gavin, their shoulders touching, now, “either I am with Gavin, or consider this my early resignation from my post.”

As soon as he’d uttered this, Captain Fowler’s cheeks puffed out, much like a puffer fish. His eyes bugged out, and he extended his hands before them both. “You can’t just threaten me this way, Nines!” he cried out, “the best I can do is just keep you where you are, but Gavin may have to retire early!”

Nines sneered at him, “I never took you for a bigot, Sir,” he accused sharply, “are you suggesting that I’m superior to Gavin’s talents, then?”

Fowler pointed at himself in shock, “Am I—Jesus, Nines!” he exclaimed loudly, “what the hell’s gotten into you?!?” he shook his head in disbelief, “whatever happened to the stone-cold Nines who hated Gavin Reed?!?”

Gavin looked down at the floor, feeling pain and tears burning in his eyes. That had indeed been a true question Fowler had the right to ask. Nines had of course changed, but Gavin felt he had in a way, too. It all felt so stuffy and tight inside the office suddenly, and Gavin had been about to interrupt, when he felt Nines leaning forward in his chair, both feet firmly planted on the floor.

“Sir,” Nines hissed, “I’m still the same ‘Nines’ who’s been a loyal employee to you…” he held Captain Fowler’s angry gaze equally, “…the only ‘change’ is that I fell deeply in love with Gavin, and I wish to be with him, now and always.”

Captain Fowler looked boldly at Gavin, next. “Gavin?? Is this some kind of a joke or prank for getting back at me for setting you two up??”

Unlike Nines, Gavin didn’t get too angry or heated. He merely smiled as he nodded, “It isn’t at all, Sir,” he answered gently, “I am also as serous about Nines in terms of a future together, and if you want to take his position away from him, then you can consider me gone and no longer working here, either.”

Nines’ hold tightened on his hand in a comforting and reassuring manner, and Gavin returned it as they both stared at Captain Fowler. Neither of them budged or blinked an eye, and Gavin felt his anger growing by the minute. So Captain Fowler wanted to force him to leave the DPD? Fine. He would do that in a heartbeat if it meant he’d be with Nines forever. He was more than willing to sacrifice his job for someone he loved and cherished deeply, and he would do it over and over again if it had to.

Captain Fowler grit his teeth, finally settling back in his chair as he pushed it along the carpet a little. “Tell me ‘why’, Gavin,” he began in a deep tone, eyes carefully grazing over Gavin’s entire form, as if trying to sniff out the slightest bit of a lie.

Gavin took his time with this question. He smiled as he stared deeply into Captain Fowler’s eyes, waiting a few more seconds until he was positive he had his superior’s complete and undivided attention. When he knew he had for certain, he almost softly breathed out, “Because I feel and know that this is real for me, Sir,” he held on tighter over Nines’ hand, their fingers looped as if they were meant to be that way all along. “And because-most important of all-real love is difficult to find in this world, and I don’t want to pass up something and someone who truly makes me happy and supports me in every way I want and need him to…” he blushed as he stared over at Nines.

The looks of genuine love and respect had been returned, and as Gavin lost himself in his husband’s eyes, he nearly forgot that they were still in Captain Fowler’s office…

The other man was silent for a long time, and Gavin worried if he had turned into a statue; completely frozen in shock over his confession. Not that it mattered ideally; Gavin didn’t want to go back on his words, and he was sticking by his dedication to Nines.

Eventually their irate police chief threw a hand up into the air, as if he’d been tossing an invisible item up at the ceiling. “Fuck it,” he sighed up at the ceiling in exhaustion, “as much as it pains me to give you bastards too much credit, you _did_ manage to capture the wife of the insane leader of this hellish gang, and you _did_ technically save many, many lives…” he folded his hands together as he leaned forward over the desk. “I need you both, you know,” he shook his head, as if he were trying to wake himself up from a strange dream, “I guess I’ll have to now talk to _my_ boss, and see what I can do to keep you _both_ here, as you are together.”

Nines stood up, extending a hand as he shook Captain Fowler’s hand excitedly. “Thank you, Sir!” he sighed a sigh of pure relief, “you have no idea how much this means to us!”

Fowler waved at him and rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah,” he chuckled, “don’t need to kiss my ass now, Nines!”

All three of them burst out in laughter at this, and as Nines sat back down, Captain Fowler shook his head again, and then cracked his knuckles. “I can’t believe that for once in my entire career, I turned out to not only be a matchmaker, but I also brought together two of the most insane men in my employment after having made a right decision!!!”

“Don’t take all the credit, Sir,” Gavin quipped, “I’d say it was a team effort between Nines and I!”

They all once again laughed gleefully and jovially, and as Gavin finished his coffee, Captain Fowler beamed brightly at him. He smiled as he nodded at Gavin. “You know what, son?” he grinned a wide grin, displaying just how pleased he was, “I’m proud of you and all your efforts.”

Knowing he meant his words sincerely, Gavin smiled as he held his empty mug down in his lap. He whistled as his eyebrows rose. “Well now! A compliment from Jeffrey Fowler?” he snickered as he winked at Nines, “I could get used to this…”

Nines smirked, going to stand up immediately, “Shall we head off to celebrate, then?”

As Gavin tried to stand, Captain Fowler tsked at them. “Woah woah,” he snickered, waving a hand down at their chairs, “sit down, you two, we’re not finished yet…”

Worrying that they were going to somehow be disciplined now that all the pleasantries had been cast out of the way, Gavin stiffened in his seat, and when Captain Fowler saw it, he rolled his eyes.

“Relax, Gavin,” he advised lowly, “there’s no need to get agitated; I’m not angry with you or Nines.”

Well, that was half the relief, but Gavin still felt slightly nervous as he only nodded curtly at Captain Fowler, a symbol for him to continue.

Fowler gave off a half-grin before he pointed at Gavin, “Irina Zelg has requested to see _you_ , Gavin,” he explained, eyes shifting over to Nines as he quickly pushed out, “and she wants you to only be there, by the way.”

Nines growled as his lips pulled back over his teeth, “What does the witch want to see Gavin for?! The last time she saw him, she wanted to bury her katana straight through him!!”

“Nines,” Gavin whispered his name softly, almost like a plea as he flinched due to how loudly Nines had yelled. Calming himself down, the RK900 sat back and turned away from Captain Fowler, choosing instead to glare away out one of the office windows.

Captain Fowler sighed as he once again took up drumming his fingertips over his desk. “Nines,” he shrugged back his broad, thick shoulders, “you’d have to ask Ms. Zelg that, but she made it abundantly clear that she wishes to speak only with Gavin.”

Not wanting to argue, Gavin stood up. “I’ll do it,” he said, and then he took a few steps backwards, heading towards the door. “But consider this the last time I am faced with that crazy woman again, Captain.”

“I understand, Gavin,” Fowler stated in a soothing tone, “she’s currently being housed in a private-and unknown to the public-cell over at Central Michigan Correctional Facility on level five maximum security.”

Nines scoffed dryly, “Just the place for a ‘celebrity criminal’, isn’t it?”

“Hush, Nines,” Fowler barked, “just make sure Gavin gets there by noon, because that’s the only time they’re letting Irina talk to anyone.”

Gavin sighed in pure exasperation. “Well, guess there’s no way out of it,” he shrugged at Nines, then backed away until he’d reached the door leading in and out of Fowler’s office. It felt so cold against his hands, and his brain registered to him that it wasn’t even 8 a.m. yet, but it was comforting to see a few of his co-workers bustling in slowly as they moved around like turtles, eagerly waiting in the Break Room for their coffee to be ready and get themselves charged enough to last through the day. It seemed like any other weekday at the DPD, but for Gavin and Nines, it always had to be different, as if they were from another world entirely.

As Gavin slowly pushed open the office door, he heard Captain Fowler standing up, and he looked over his shoulder to regard their superior out of respect.

Captain Fowler only gave him a gentle smile, his cheeks rising along on his cheekbones as his eyes welled up with emotions not unlike paternal feelings for Gavin especially. “I’m sorry if it seemed like I wasn’t grateful for the work and efforts you devoted into this police station, Gavin,” Fowler began in an utmost sincere and kind tone that flooded the room with warmth and radiant colors, “but please know that I always respected you, I always will, and I want you to know that what you do here has full value and meaning, each and every day.”

It was as sincere as any words of gratitude could be, and Gavin felt his day turning brighter as he repeated the words in his head a few times. Finally, when he felt ready to move, he saluted Captain Fowler, though it hadn’t been sarcastic at all like it once used to be in the past. This time, it was in earnest, it was out of respect, and Captain Fowler even grinned as he returned the gesture pleasantly.

No more words needed to be exchanged; they all felt and knew what they had to do, and both Gavin and Nines were able to carry on knowing fully well that they would be welcomed back into the DPD without judgement, without hatred, discrimination, and they would only receive full acceptance, no matter the nature of their relationship.

Still, these things weren’t nearly as important to them as the love they had for each other, as they only needed that in their lives; nothing more, nothing less.

 

{---@```---@```---}

 

Nines stood by Gavin as they stared down ahead at the long hallway leading up to a large, wide, thick electric fence that gated off where Irina was kept away from the rest of the dangerous inmates on the maximum-security housing unit. They were both wearing ‘visitor’ badges, and Gavin fit his comfortably on the left lapel of his sweater, as did Nines.

The penitentiary was rather loud, as the inmates no doubt possibly had seen and heard of their visit, and were spitting out rumors, insults, threats, jokes, and other notions that entertained themselves while Nines and Gavin waited for the security guards and correctional officers to buzz them through the large gated door. The gate slid open to the side slowly, and Gavin felt his mouth and throat going dry as he turned and tried to find a source of comfort in looking at Nines.

The tall RK900 smiled down at him, his long, loose brown hair strand flying and sliding down from the rest of his dark brown tidy pile. It dangled over his eyes, and Gavin reached up gently, brushing it out of his field of view as he blushed lightly. Nines was staring at him with a look of pure, undiluted love, and he clasped his hands behind his back as he stayed behind to let Gavin go on ahead.

“Take your time, Gavin,” Nines spoke calmly, taking a step back as he waited by the edge of the wall where there was a small bench. He sat down on it, smiling at Gavin as he held his hand in his own. “I’ll be here waiting for you,” he reassured, and then kissed the back of Gavin’s hand.

Gavin wished he could just stay with Nines, but the correctional officers told him that he was only allotted fifteen minutes of a visit with Irina, and the sooner he got those fifteen minutes over with, the better. His skin was already itching just thinking about Irina’s cold, maddening eyes upon himself, and he made a mental note to keep his eyes down on the floor as he took the first few steps down the hall.

His footsteps were his only source of company as he walked by large stone walls, the left-hand side of the dreary, dimly lit hallway revealing a few more cells where some of the deadliest inmates were housed. They kept to themselves for the most part, but would sometimes stare at him out of the corner of their eyes when he passed by. Thankfully, a small metal chair had already been laid out for him before the very last cell on the left, and Gavin eventually stood before it. He refused to look into Irina’s cell right away, but he glanced up slowly when he felt her piercing gaze shattering through to him.

When his eyes met hers, Gavin nearly recoiled. Irina looked so…different, suddenly. She appeared to be far older physically, weaker, exhausted, and lost. Her bangs seemed longer, and they covered her eyelashes, though they moved every time she blinked at Gavin. Her skin seemed pale in the light, and she had bags under her eyes. Her blue prison jumpsuit barely fit around her body, and Gavin wondered just how much weight she’d lost. Her hair was thin and limp, and it no longer held the cascading curls and waves it once had. In all, she looked very tired, and sick. No…she looked stressed.

Gavin didn’t know why he still felt some empathy and sympathy for this cunning, conniving witch of a woman. He did, however, and the portion of himself that represented his need to care and look out for others kicked in, and he offered Irina a sad look as he breathed out, “I’m sorry about the loss of your husband, Irina.”

She turned her eyes down to the floor for a split second and then sneered coldly, “I don’t care for your lies, Detective,” she hissed cruelly, “if you cared at all, you wouldn’t have let your husband kill my Nojus!!”

Gavin felt his defenses rising. He held onto the back of the chair tightly, and then sat himself down in it. “Your ‘Nojus’ broke the law,” he snapped irritably, “in at least fifty different ways, Irina!”

She roared, “You think I’m not aware of that, Detective!?!? Hmm??!” she stomped a foot on the floor, “do you think I am just this ignorant woman with death on her mind always?!?”

He actually had no idea how to answer that. As Gavin sat before Irina, he gazed around her cell, as if that would help him draw some conclusions about who she was as an individual. He found her cell walls to be mostly bare, except for one little drawing she’d posted with clear tape above her bed, and it was of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Her clothes were all neatly folded on top of a desk, and a chair was tucked into that, and except for the bed, a toilet, and a small sink against the fall end of the cell wall, Irina had nothing with her. He still had no idea what to make of her, or the situation, so he merely held his head in his hands as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

There was a prolonged moment of silence before Irina whispered out, “Forty-one…”

“I’m sorry?” Gavin immediately stared up at her. She walked to the glass door, and she sighed as she looked so defeated.

“Nojus was forty-one, and his Alejandro was twenty-two years of age, and I myself am almost thirty-nine, yet he had more in common with that _child_ than he ever had with me!” her voice cracked as her emotions bubbled over, and Gavin looked away. He had no idea what to say to her, but as someone who was only roughly two years younger than she was, he shivered at the thought of Nines falling for a young person as well. But was that what Irina had wanted to speak to him about??? Surely not…the last thing he could picture was the widow of an infamous gang leader seeking relationship counselling and grieving from him.

“Irina,” he began in a gentle tone, “it’s not like you didn’t know about your husband marrying and bringing another person into your relationship, right?” he saw her nod slowly, her eyes turning slightly dewy and pink, perhaps as she held back from bursting into tears. It made him feel weak, and he hated that he was showing her so much sympathy she didn’t deserve at all. “If it was so bad, why did you stay with him?”

It was an honest, genuine question, and she placed a hand on the glass barrier between them as she sighed, “Because I loved him, and I wanted him to be happy…does that make me evil, Detective?”

He shook his head, “No; it just means you had genuine love for your husband.”

She trembled with rage, “But then why did he choose to die in the arms of that fucking young boy instead of a grown woman closer to his own age?!?! WHY!?!”

It had been the same thing Gavin wondered about, but he hadn’t chosen to ask at all. He wasn’t one to every pry into the private life of another person, but seeing as the woman was growing more and more upset by the minute, he placed his hands on his thighs as he sat up in his seat and stared straight ahead at her. “I think…” he cleared his throat, swallowed, and then tried again when she glared directly through his head. “I think that your husband did love you both, for sure, but he was _in love_ with Alejandro…” he winced when she scowled, “…do you know what I mean?” It’d been a conclusion he’d drawn himself when he saw the passionate exchange between the High Priest and Alejandro, and the latter’s reluctance to leave his husband’s side had portrayed his true feelings at heart, even though they were both fighting for a terrible cause.

Trembling, Irina sniffled as her jaw and chin quivered. “It wasn’t a-always like this, you know,” she croaked, lowering her head and then running a hand through her hair, pushing it back over her shoulders. “He once used to give me all his attention; he took me throughout the streets of Venice during our honeymoon, he used to write me poems and sing me songs, and he used to treat me so, so very well…” her eyes suddenly turned murderous and dark, then, as if recalling a horrible memory, “…but when that fucking menace of a child showed up, Nojus turned into a completely different person! It was as if someone had put a spell on him, and he never had time for me, suddenly, and he didn’t want to have a child with me like we planned, and things just turned worse from there when he claimed he was doing the work of ‘God’.”

Gavin frowned in mild confusion, “Do you mean Alejandro encouraged him to be a cult leader?”

“No,” she corrected while playing with the glass, “but he really didn’t listen to me anymore the longer he spent time around Alejandro, and he wanted to always do things for Alejandro instead.” Her shoulders slumped forward, and she tapped on the glass a few times with a sad smile.

Nodding, Gavin leaned back, sensing that their time was almost up when he saw a correctional officer approaching from the far end of the hall. Not standing up just yet, Gavin merely reached out with a hand, and he raised it towards Irina’s. She lowered her hand, then, and in the span of a second, their hands were connected palm-to-palm, though the protective barrier was still between them.

Offering her a small smile, Gavin finally rose to his feet. “You cannot control with whom you fall in love, Irina,” he stated in a kind tone, and tears finally welled up in her eyes, though they didn’t spill over yet. “I don’t think your husband meant to hurt you; he was just in love with someone else, and that isn’t your fault or your doing, do you understand?”

For the second time in less than twenty minutes, Gavin had to question why he was offering a criminal this kind of reassuring advice and support. Was he _really_ that badly out of his mind!?? Perhaps Slo-Freeze had indeed taken a toll on his mind and conscience, but he would have to figure that out later, he decided. For now, he backed off when the correctional officer cleared his throat, indicating that it was time for Gavin to leave.

He slowed backed up, though his hand remained on the glass door of Irina’s cell. She didn’t move her hand away yet, and when she looked up at him, Gavin saw only one tear trickling down from her eye and over onto her cheek. It left its wet trail behind, but she made no move to wipe or brush it off as she simply stood before him.

Finally, her jaw opened, though it quivered as she struggled to hold back sobs that were threatening to spill out of her mouth. “C-can you ever forgive me, Detective Reed?” her voice sounded so small and like that of a little girl as she sniffled, “I’m afraid that I won’t be able to forgive myself, or what we all did, but p-please, can you find it in yourself to ever forgive us…” her eyes were so full of pain as she took one long look at Gavin, “…or me?”

It was a question he didn’t know how to answer at all, nor had he been prepared for it. As Gavin stood before Irina, he took notice of many things at once. She looked truly defeated and broken without her husband’s power and control, though Gavin also noticed that she looked ‘free’. Things would no doubt be painful for her for some time to come, but she had her mental and emotional freedom now that she wasn’t under the control of a psychotic maniac any longer.

Still, he was unable to say what he truly had been thinking and feeling. Irina wasn’t evil all by herself, but she had tried killing him and Nines on a few occasions, and Gavin had no idea how to respond to her. She’d been through enough pain and turmoil, and he didn’t want to hold onto his own grudges for now.

Yes, he’d decided on a bitter-sweet parting, in the end. Some words were better heard when not uttered.

He nodded at her, “Goodbye, Lady Irina.”

More tears spilled, and she leaned away from the cell door as she retreated into the darkness of her cell until he could hardly see her. Turning away, Gavin made his way back down the hall, the correctional officer leading the path in front of him, but for some reason, the walk seemed so much longer this time around.


	53. I Trust You, I Love You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *WARNING! SEX!*

It was all silent as Gavin lay beside Nines in his husband’s bedroom, simply thinking as he stared ahead at the ceiling. He was unable to keep how he felt to himself, and his thoughts soon wandered over to how he felt about the murder of the young Alejandro. The more Gavin thought about it, the harder disenthralling his mind from the subject it all became.

“He wasn’t even twenty-five, Nines,” Gavin cried out for the hundredth time that day, but Nines didn’t mind or seem weary of it. He supported Gavin, he listened to him, and he comforted him as he gently reminded him that they did whatever they could to stop the gang activity from spreading.

Shelley was sitting between their bodies, almost curling up into Gavin’s chest like a small cat. Her light was baby-blue, and she let out little beeps and purrs whenever Gavin gently and softly stroked her head and ears. She leaned into every touch greedily, and when Nines tried gently placing a hand over Gavin’s chest, she snapped her head towards the side, effectively butting her head with the RK900’s arm almost aggressively.

Frowning at her, Nines attempted to touch Gavin again, but then Shelley smacked his hand with her head once more.

“You little greedy beast!” Nines growled down at her with a red LED light that closely matched Shelley’s red eye-light.

BEEEEEEEEEP!!! “Deal. With. It. Nines.”

His LED light burned even redder as he spat at her angrily with his teeth showing sharply and fiercely, “Who told you that you could stay here anyway, Shelley??”

Beeeeep!!!! Boooop!!! “Queens. Don’t. Need. Anyone’s. Permission.”

“How are you becoming ruder and ruder each day?!”

Beeeeep! “Fuck. You. That’s. How.”

Nines growled, “I’ll disconnect your damn power source, then.”

………..

“I. Love. You. Nines?” Shelley whispered as sweetly as she could, her light turning bright pink and glowing warmly.

Gavin sighed as he rolled over and faced Nines tiredly, “Are you two fighting again???” He watched as Nines and Shelley ceased glaring away at each other, and then stared over almost innocently at him. Shelley purred as she nestled beneath his arm, but Gavin sat up in the bed.

“Shelley,” he chuckled while she tilted her head back and appeared to be so happy and proud of herself, “I told you many times; I love you and Nines both! There’s no need to compete for my attention!”

The little Nano-Bot seemed to warm up by Gavin’s words, and she nuzzled her head against his hand, as if pleading for more attention. Gavin snickered, holding her up to his chest as he whispered at her for a few minutes. Nines rolled his eyes and got off the bed to grab a book, then sat a little far away from them.

After a minute or so more of Gavin’s cooing, Nines sighed, “You’re spoiling her…”

“Shhhh,” Gavin whispered, and then lowered Shelley onto the floor and watched her float away and out of the room. “See?” he pointed as Shelley disappeared, and she made sure the door closed behind herself as she swished her tail at it.

Nines grumbled, “Why does she only listen to _you_??”

Gavin winked playfully, “Because I’m amazing, that’s why!!”

Rolling his eyes, Nines then smirked, grateful to have all of Gavin’s attention as he stuck right beside his husband and wrapped an arm around him. “That, you certainly are, my love,” he purred and cooed into Gavin’s thick mop of hair.

Time passed as Gavin simply closed his eyes-but didn’t fall asleep-while clinging on to Nines. Soon, it became nightfall, and Nines kept reading until he’d finished his book. Closing it and placing it back onto the night table beside the bed, Nines turned to Gavin. He simply wanted to watch Gavin sleeping as the moonlight from the large window illumined his handsome features. Gavin practically basked in the light the moon and stars above outside provided, and Nines slowly reached out with his thumb, and he stroked Gavin’s soft cheeks.

His response was Gavin smiling, and then extending his hands as he held Nines close to his own warm body. “I’m not asleep yet!” Gavin whispered, kissing Nines softly on the neck.

“I’m glad you aren’t, my love.”

They sought each other out, holding onto one another as Gavin curled himself against Nines, trying to get comfortable. It didn’t require much effort or time for them to cuddle each other warmly and softly, and Gavin merely closed his eyes as he enjoyed his closeness with his husband. It’d seemed so long since they’d been alone like this, and Gavin was going to take whatever he could get now, before they were interrupted again…though he truly hoped that wouldn’t ever be the case.

Nines didn’t stay still for long, however; he began checking Gavin over carefully, lifting his shirt hem up as he gently pressed onto his bones, making sure the bruises in his skin were healing.

“I’m fine, Nines,” Gavin lightly hissed, “there’s no need to dote on me this intently; it’s just minor bruising, you know.”

“Just let me hold you now that you’re safe with me here,” Nines held tightly onto Gavin, and the other man felt a little crushed by the tight embrace, though he didn’t mind it. He needed to be with Nines all night, and they gazed into each other’s eyes for an unknown period of time silently. They were feeling, observing, and just being together, and it made Gavin’s heart swell with plenty of emotions.

It wasn’t long before Nines placed a chaste kiss onto Gavin’s lips, but the kiss didn’t remain chaste for too long. Nines had tried kissing Gavin delicately, but soon, their lips and tongues grew wilder, more passionate, and Nines forced his tongue deeply inside Gavin’s mouth at the same time as Gavin had grabbed Nines’ nether regions firmly.

Their tongues twined and danced together as if they were trying to devour one another; Nines sucked at Gavin, ravenously yearning for more of him while Gavin’s nimble fingers worked the loose clothes off his husband’s body slowly. Each touch seemed to be an attempt to pour forth feelings that just couldn’t be put simply into words, and both men felt the meanings purely between each other. Nines soon rolled himself on top of Gavin, effectively trapping and pinning the shorter male below himself with his body.

As Nines peered down at Gavin’s face bathing in the moonlight pouring forth from the windows, he was in awe at Gavin’s features as he panted for air while something scorched and burned deeply within the pit of his belly. Gavin felt taken aback by his own feelings, as if he’d been set aflame. The way Gavin was acting made Nines incapable of resisting his desires, so he kissed Gavin again. This time, Nines showered Gavin with gentle kisses, setting fire to every part of his skin as he kissed away at his chin and neck. Gavin felt so surprisingly warm, and Nines found he couldn’t get enough of it at all.

As Nines’ hands roamed over Gavin’s body, his fingertips accidentally brushed Gavin’s nipples, causing Gavin to moan ardently. The sound of it drove Nines insane, and he stared down seriously at Gavin while his eyebrows began knitting together. Gavin felt his heart skip a beat when he saw the look on his husband’s face. Never had he seen Nines so out of control, yet so passionate as he intoned exactly what he wanted and needed. It was as if they’d been swept up inside a storm that was primeval, primitive, and horribly destructive, but they didn’t want to struggle against its predetermined path.

Hurriedly pulling up Gavin’s shirt, Nines revealed his creamy chest and pressed his lips to the smooth, faintly flushed skin. Gavin’s hands and shoulders twitched, but he got them moving as he cradled Nines’ head.

The sensation of Gavin’s skin drew Nines in deeper. His husband’s reddened nipples made Nines think of the blood pulsing beneath them in his veins. Gently, he took Gavin’s right nipple into his mouth, and without thinking, he softly bit down on it.

“Ah!!!” Gavin pulled his shirt out of the way, yanking it off as he eagerly sought out to be as close to Nines as possible, skin pressed against skin.

Nines derived a surreptitious pleasure from the fact that he’d managed to provoke such a strong, desperate reaction out of his husband. Nines knew he was going to enjoy this debauchery, given how innocently Gavin was still touching him. As Nines continued to lick Gavin’s hardened nipple, he began sliding his hand from Gavin’s taut, firm stomach to his cock. As Gavin arched up into the touch, Nines undid the loose knot of the thread of his shorts, and he slipped a hand inside Gavin’s underwear. The heat he found there drove him forward, as it was so provocative that he was hardly able to control himself. He loved how Gavin arched against him while his hips gently pushed forward a rhythm against his hand. Such lewd motions made Nines want to press on faster and harder.

Curling a hand around Gavin’s stiff cock, Nines whispered into Gavin’s ear that he also wanted to embrace his heart. “Sexual intercourse isn’t the only way to satisfy desires of the flesh, my love,” he purred into Gavin’s ears, sending the other man reeling back in a hot moaning mess.

The air around them had grown hotter, and Nines slowly began moving his hand up and down Gavin’s cock while Gavin arched his back up in pure ecstasy. The clear liquid that had flowed freely from the tip ran between Nines’ long fingers and began to make slick, barely audible noises which turned both men on even more. It was terribly lascivious, all the more so when coupled with the sticky sensation pouring liberally from Gavin’s cock.

“Nines!! Ahhh! Wait!” Gavin’s chest heaved, and he sat up all of a sudden, momentarily breaking away from the hold Nines had on him. Nines was completely overtaken by the sight of Gavin, and he felt himself melting away in his blue eyes. Gavin yanked Nines’ shirt off as he gripped it by the hem, tossing it down to the floor as he eagerly sought out his husband’s nude chest pressed on his own.

They stripped off the remainder of their clothes, giving each other enrapturing smiles. Their pale, naked bodies gleamed wonderfully in the light the moon and stars provided, and Nines whispered to Gavin that he was utterly radiant and beautiful. As they wrapped their arms around each other, a heart and a thirium pump pulsated and overlapped and blended so wonderfully together that they were unable to tell whose pulse belonged to who.

Drawing back a little, Gavin gripped Nines’ hand in his own, admiring how it was a little larger than his own. He took Nines’ index and middle finger in a grip and placed both fingers in his mouth. He then closed his eyes and swirled his tongue around the digits in the same way he’d always sucked his husband’s cock before. As Nines watched the beautiful sight before himself, he felt even more aroused, and an almost beastly, possessive need to claim Gavin overwhelmed him.

He placed a hand on Gavin’s cheek while desperately urging, “Don’t close your eyes or take your eyes off me…watch me…now!”

Those blue-grey depths met his, soon, and giving him a calm smile, Gavin rested a hand on Nines’ shoulder and lifted his hips a little. Releasing the wet digits from his mouth with a wet ‘pop’, he reached behind himself, and those two fingers slid inside his body slowly. Gavin’s eyebrows twisted in what might have been pain or pleasure, but he pumped himself using Nines’ hand as he let out a small sigh. He loosened himself gently, closing his eyes and missing how mesmerized Nines was and how utterly transfixed he’d been when he saw how lewdly Gavin’s hips swayed while he fucked himself on his husband’s fingers.

The transparent sticky drops continued to trail from the tip of Gavin’s erection, and he tipped his head back as he offered the white pallor of his throat for Nines’ eyes to burn into. Gavin’s lips released sweet, satiated sighs while his shoulders shook, and it was oddly alluring to Nines. He peeked down between their bodies and saw how greedily Gavin’s hole ate up his fingers. It made him smile as he resisted the urge to ravage Gavin right on the spot.

Finally, Gavin gently pulled out the fingers he’d used to prepare himself, and while exhaling slowly, he gave Nines another provocative look, as though appearing to be caught in a trance. “Are you ready to make me feel good, baby?” he growled lustfully, and Nines growled carnally back in response, unable to find words for the time being.

Gavin leaned forward and licked a long stripe from the base of Nines’ cock all the way to the tip. He then pressed small kisses onto the shaft, allowing his tongue to flicker across the tip before he guided it inside his mouth. His tongue flattened over the tip before he ran it over the entire shaft greedily.

Before he could swallow more of Nines’ length into his throat, there was a tight grip on his shoulders, and Gavin was lifted away from Nines’ cock, and then carefully brought down so he was straddling Nines’ hips and lap, now. Their eyes were focused only on each other’s, and then Gavin took control, slowly lowering himself down over the rock-hard erection poking up into his ass cheeks. He angled himself just enough to let the tip pry his entrance open further, and he sat himself down slowly and carefully.

Both men made a delicious noise that communicated the sheer pleasure they felt from being connected finally. Nines’ head was spinning as he felt his cock being swallowed up by such a tight, hot channel of flesh, and he would never stop wanting to be inside Gavin. Power and energy ebbed out of him, and he could hardly hold back on pounding away inside Gavin like his instincts begged him to do.

Sitting up closer, Gavin moved his hips until Nines was almost fully inside him. “Fuuuck,” he hissed, “aahh…it’s…all th-the way in, Nines…” Gavin exhaled a shuddering breath, his expression a mixture of agony and pleasure.

Eyeing his lewd smiles, Nines shifted his hips. “Move, before I lose control…” he warned in a guttural, deep growl. The moment he finished speaking, Gavin’s arms encircled his shoulders and neck, and he began steadily rocking his hips.

Nines instinctively pressed a hand over Gavin’s waist, feel his husband’s soft insides pressing in on him, undulating against him. He could’ve sworn he began salivating. Plenty of blinding waves of pleasure surged up from his cock over and over every time Gavin moved.

Struggling hard not to ejaculate right away, Gavin stroked himself for a moment, but then felt Nines reaching out and grasping his throbbing cock for him. Gavin’s entire body was flushed, but he never slowed in his movements as he bit by bit increased the pace and drowned them both in the sounds of his deep moans. As his cries of pleasure spilled from his parted lips, Nines found he couldn’t look away. It was so erotic, and more instincts within Nines begged him to make Gavin plead and beg for more.

As Nines firmly stroked Gavin’s cock-already soaked in pre-cum, he pushed himself up on one elbow and began thrusting into Gavin wildly from below. It soon made Gavin scream as he threw his head back and erratically moved on his own, feeling a delicious numbness simmering within him, spreading all over his body.

The uneven rhythm Gavin had set made Nines want to give into the compulsion to penetrate his husband as deeply and as hard as he could. Yet, he knew he loved Gavin too much to hurt him, and he bit down on his tongue to stop himself before he hammered his cock faster inside Gavin.

“You…oh fuck!” Gavin cried out, a panting mess, “…you fucking feel so good inside me, Nines!”

Seeing him so ravished with pleasure made warm affection rise up beneath Nines’ desire for Gavin. Nines leaned forward and captured Gavin’s mouth in a heated kiss.

As their tongues tangled, Nines held onto Gavin’s waist and drove his cock upward with several careful, powerful thrusts, aiming directly for Gavin’s prostate. He hit the sweet spot, causing Gavin to go completely limp as he tried not to collapse on Nines.

Gavin’s hot breaths grazing his ears were particularly seductive. Unable to hold back, Nines rocked into Gavin harder than before, using all his strength to truly fuck and screw Gavin like a wild, untamed beast wearing down on its prey.

The bed sheets beneath them soaked up their sweat and formed endless wrinkles and an array of new, interesting patterns as they bounced against each other. Both men loved hearing the slick, vulgar sound of skin slapping together, coupled with wild breathing. Each noise dissolved into the dim room as hurriedly as it pressed out of them, swallowed whole by the night.

“Nines!”

“I love…I love…fuck!” Nines gasped between labored breaths, clinging to Gavin’s thighs as he moved harder inside him. Gavin responded in kind by pressing warm kisses to his cheek. Both of them knew they would reach their limit, soon, and Gavin dug his fingertips into those sturdy shoulders as he clung to Nines and rode him for all he was worth.

Nines pounded away into him with herculean motions, feeling his release demanding to exit, and at the same time, he gripped the head of Gavin’s cock quite firmly. Whiteness behind their closed eyelids exploded, scattering around them like bubbles and daises blown by a warm summer breeze. Nines had finally poured all his heat and desire deeply into Gavin, coating his depths for a few minutes as he panted against his neck while cradling his body tightly. Gavin nearly came a second later, moaning wordless nothings as he repeatedly called out for Nines. Hot semen spurted forth from Gavin and sprayed deliciously all over Nines’ abdomen.

They both felt boneless, and they slumped forward against each other. Nines looked at Gavin, holding his face in his hands as he whispered out finally, “I love you…”

“Nines…I love you too…” laughing, Gavin gently kissed his lips, and once or twice when he tried getting up to lie back in bed, he failed. Laughing, he wheezed out in exhaustion, “I can’t…I c-can’t get up on my own…”

Helping him, Nines carefully rose enough so his flaccid member slid out of Gavin’s body, and he pushed the man back onto his chest as he guided them both to fall onto their backs while they lazily closed their eyes and just held onto each other. Smiling bashfully, Gavin rested his head on Nines’ chest while Nines wiped the remnants of their coupling off his stomach.

“Goodnight,” Gavin had muttered it so faintly, that Nines almost missed hearing it.

Kissing his forehead, Nines smiled back, “I really, really love you, Gavin.”

His answer was a light kiss on his lips, and then Gavin settled back on the pillows.

Both men fell asleep with peaceful smiles on their faces while clinging to each other all night long.

 

**EPILOGUE**

**THREE WEEKS LATER**

Nines grinned like a Cheshire Cat as he leaned back in the driver’s seat of his car, connecting straight ahead with Connor. It’d been a lovely summer day; particularly bright, sunny, warm, and windy in the right way. He drove with the windows slightly rolled down, easing himself into his seat while he waited for Connor to accept his incoming communication request. Nines felt a low, dull vibration deep within his core soon, and he focused partly on the traffic as he connected to Connor instantly.

**_Connor, how are you?_ **

**_Not too bad, Nines! Did you finally get Gavin’s gift??_ **

Staring down at the little black kitten in its kitty carrier next to him on the passenger seat, Nines smiled an excited smile. **_I sure did, Connor! She’s been vaccinated and dewormed already; all that’s left is for Gavin to name her!_**

He turned hurriedly down the large, fancy streets that eventually would lead up to his own, and when he drove over a pothole, the kitten let out a surprised mewl as her yellow-green eyes went wide.

Nines gently tapped on the door of the carrier. “Shhh,” he cooed and soothed softly, “it’s alright girl! We’ll be home soon, and you can finally get out of that tiny little thing!”

 ** _Already attached to her, huh??_** Connor mused lightly, snickering, though it was in a friendly way.

Nines beamed at the kitten. **_How can I not fall in love with her, Connor?? She’s beautiful! You should see her sometime!_**

He drove past lovely trees and bushes, smiling at his neighbors as they waved to him cheerfully and gleefully. Majority of their children were out playing since school was out, and there was a lot of laughter and joy ringing about in the bright street. A few bumblebees buzzed and hummed about happily around large flowers and trees, and the wind blew slightly, carrying pollen with it and all sorts of beautiful mid-summer scents. It really was a lovely day, and Nines couldn’t wait to make Gavin’s day even lovelier when he brought him the kitten.

 ** _Tell me though, Nines,_** Connor chuckled, **_did Gavin have to beg you for a pet or something? Because we both know at this point that you’d never, ever abide by the idea of having an animal in that fancy palace of yours!!_**

Nines only smiled at his own reflection in the rear view mirror. **_No begging was necessary from my darling Gavin, Connor,_** he answered truthfully, **_Gavin’s currently quite content with just Shelley being our little brat, but I figured he could use a new pet, seeing as the blasted gang-that-must-not-be-mentioned killed his last one._**

 ** _Ahh, you’re such a romantic, Nines!_** Connor laughed again heartily, **_Well, just remember that Hank and I should be over sometime later in the week, okay?_**

**_Hmm, very well, but do let me know ahead of time, because Gavin’s parents and sister will be visiting us soon as well to make plans and be involved with the wedding ceremony next month!_ **

**_No sweat, Nines!_** Connor chirped merrily as ever, **_I’m hanging out with J.D. and Hank, soon!!_**

Nines was grinning from ear-to-ear, even though Connor wasn’t able to see it. **_I’m pleased to hear this good news, Connor, but are you ever going to just give in to that poor Brit’s pursuit and just go on one date with him??_** He hadn’t meant to pry in Connor’s personal life, but he was frankly exhausted with J.D. constantly pestering him and trying to ask him how to best ‘woo’ Connor. It would help a great deal if the RK800 caved in and just rewarded his romantic suitor with at least one dinner date, Nines supposed.

Pausing for a moment, Connor grumbled, **_I haven’t given it a lot of thought yet, Nines, but J.D.’s been awfully nice to me lately, especially at work!!_**

 ** _Because he’s rather smitten with you,_** Nines practically drawled in a dull tone, **_I say leave Hank out of it, and just go out with J.D. once alone to see how you two get along!!_**

Yet again, there was a stretched, pregnant pause, but before Nines could backtrack and apologize, Connor chuckled a playful chuckle.

**_You know, that’s actually not a bad idea, Nines!! I may just do it!_ **

Hearing the other android’s smile and laughter practically echoing in his head, Nines responded warmly, **_It’ll be fine, I promise. J.D.’s a good guy._**

**_Thanks Nines! Talk to you later, and I’ll let you know how it goes!_ **

**_Goodbye, Connor._ **

When the tires of the vehicle finally hit the large driveway, Nines breathed out a happy sigh of relief. He unbuckled his seatbelt, and then turned over and smiled at the kitten. “We’re here!!” he announced joyfully to her, and she rubbed her cheeks and head against the little metallic grate between Nines and her own body.

He stroked her whiskers through the little open spaces in the grate. “Come on, girl,” he grabbed the handle of the kitty carrier, and he gently pulled it against his chest as he opened the car door. As soon as he’d exited the vehicle and closed the door, Nines sensed a lot of rapid and erratic movement coming from within the house. He was positive that Gavin was eagerly waiting for him to come home from his ‘shopping trip’, and he beamed with pride as he approached the front door.

A green light shined brightly in his eyes, and Nines knew it was Shelley. Unlocking the front door of the house, he held up the cat carrier high, just in case Shelley’s presence and appearance disturbed or frightened the poor kitten.

Shelley let out an angry BEEEEEEEP when she scanned the carrier and detected the kitten inside it. “What. The. Hell. Nines,” she spat angrily, “New. Baby. Home. And. I. Didn’t. Know. Jack. Diddly!”

He grinned, “Sorry Shelley, but I wanted to keep it a surprise for Gavin…”

Booooooooooop! Beeeeeep! “You’ve. Got. A. Surprise. Waiting. For. You. Too. Then. Nines!” she sang out, almost giggling a little at the end of her sentence.

Nines frowned in clear confusion, “What’re you talking about Shelley?”

“Babe?”

Nines stared up ahead down the hall, and he smiled happily when he saw Gavin walking towards him, dressed in white slacks and a blue and white checkered flannel shirt. He beamed brightly as the sun outside and dove into Nines’ arms, not seeing that Nines was hiding the carrier behind his back…

“Missed youuuu!” Gavin cried out, squeezing Nines close to himself, but then he froze when he saw that Nines wasn’t reciprocating the embrace and gesture. His brows knotted on his forehead as he tilted his head to the side. “Nines? What’re you hiding behind your back?”

Not wanting to drag it out longer, Nines held out the carrier, and he gently placed it down by Gavin’s feet. Opening the door of it, he gently picked the black kitten up, and he held her before Gavin.

At once, the shorter man’s jaw fell wide open in shock. “Niiiiiiiiiines!!! Oh my god!” he gasped, crying out in joy as he held her to his own chest and played with her ears softly, “she’s beautiful!!!”

“She’s yours,” Nines announced, “I know I said before that I couldn’t abide by an animal in the house, but I want you to be happy, Gavin.”

Holding the kitten up so he could stare at her again, Gavin cried out in zeal and excitement when he saw that she had a little bell and a purple bow around her neck. “I _am_ happy, Nines!” he exclaimed, kissing Nines softly on the lips, and then the top of the kitten’s head. “I’m gonna call her ‘Mar’, I think!”

Nines smirked, “Mar? Seems charming…”

“Hmm…” as Gavin cradled the kitten to his chest, Nines suddenly looked up with a tiny frown.

“Hey, where’s Shelley?” he asked his husband carefully, and he missed how Gavin’s cheeks turned red, and then he cleared his throat.

Blinking shyly, Gavin giggled, “Umm, Nines,” he shifted a little closer to his husband, “I kinda got you…errr, _us both_ something!”

Nines quirked a brow, suddenly, “Alright…but why do I feel like I’m not going to really like it?”

Gavin chewed on his lower lip, but before he could answer, Nines heard many tiny claws skittering and tapping along the floorboards. Tiny yips and barks echoed down the hall, and then as the barking grew louder, Nines turned towards it and let out a panicked scream.

Before him charged seven Corgi puppies; the Corgi puppies from the Saunders Gavin had rescued. They were all chubbier and a bit older, now, and looked a lot healthier and cleaner, their furry coats shining and glistening as they stopped at Nines’ heels while yipping and howling, and then barking at the frightened kitten Gavin was still holding onto.

Nines’ jaw looked about ready to hit the floor. Shelley came whirring in after the puppies, laughing in a high-pitched voice as one of the puppies chased her in a tiny circle.

Slowly spinning to look at Gavin, Nines hissed out, “Gaaaaaaaaaviiiiiiiin!!!!!” he was taken aback by all the puppies as they panted, drooled, yipped, barked, and were play-fighting with each other in agitated motions. “GAVIN!!!!!!!!!” Nines roared a little louder, “we can’t keep them all!!!!”

Gavin sputtered with wide eyes as Nines scowled at him with vitriol, “Don’t look at me like _that_ , Nines!” his shocked expression then turned into a mischievous, devilish grin. “After all, _you_ yourself said you wanted seven kids, remember?” he winked at Nines after he said this, and Mar purred as she rubbed the top of her little head beneath his chin.

Though Nines had been scowling angrily at Gavin, he found he couldn’t stay angry for too long. Gavin was just too damn cute.

Leaning into Gavin, Nines snuck a hand around his neck and kissed his forehead. “You’re lucky I adore you so very much, you brat,” he then kissed the tip of Gavin’s nose, and then the scar there softly.

Gavin merely leaned into the kiss, smiling as he blushed deeply. “Of course I’m lucky, Nines,” he stated proudly and confidently, “but now, I’m even happier and luckier, because I have the best family in Detroit!” When the puppies had calmed down, Gavin set Mar down, and she curiously explored her new home.

“I’d say you certainly do,” Nines agreed, and while the puppies chased each other and Shelley into the library and about the large hallways, Nines pinched Gavin’s cheek playfully and then kissed the spot he’d pinched.

“But just so you know,” he purred softly as his lips grazed over Gavin’s ear seductively and sensually, “I’m going to definitely have to punish you for your naughtiness, my darling Gavin Reed…” he nipped Gavin’s earlobe, and it sent the right kind of shivers down Gavin’s spine.

The shorter male moaned softly, wrapping both arms around Nines’ neck as he tilted his head back and pressed their bodies tightly together.

“I’m not worried, you know,” he smiled as he closed his eyes and slowly inched his lips over to his husband’s, “in fact, there’s nothing more I want than a salacious punishment, especially from _you_ , _husband of mine…_ ”

 

**END**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SOOOO! There we have our brilliant (at least I think it's brilliant) end!! Gavin gained a kitty, and Nines technically DID get 7 kids like he originally wanted ;)  
> Hell, even Connor and J.D. are doing well, and who knows how their first date will go! ^_^ They deserve some lurv! <3
> 
> There's one more chapter left, but it's mainly extra notes, where the future of my work MAY be headed, and thank you shout outs to my editors and anyone who did fanart for the story. It's my way of saying thank you to everyone for being so wonderful and amazing with me so far in the making of the story, plus, I wanted to provide my inspiration for some of the villains in my fic as I mentioned I had based them off real life cases.
> 
> I truly hope people enjoyed the story from start to finish, and thank you to anyone who gave this story a read!!
> 
> See you all next week for the final 'chapter', and much love to you all!  
> 💞💕


	54. Thank You and Notes

**Thank You and Notes**

I seriously can’t believe that another one of my stories is finished!! I’ve said it before, but it really feels like a kid of mine has grown up and left the house every time I mark one of my WIPs as ‘complete’!! It’s a stab in the heart, I swear!!

All that aside, however, I wanted to take some time to thank my on and off again editor, Queen Royala who edited parts of this story whenever she could. Thank you for being a darling, even though you’re working hard to kick off your career and welcome a new baby into your life!!😱😱😱😭

Yes, Queen Royala is pregnant, I recently learned, so congratulations, dear, and all the best to you in your future!!!! Avixi Lynn’s gonna be an auntie, it seems!!!😨😱🙏💞💞

Thanks so much for working with me whenever you could, and thank you for putting up with my b.s. all along, Queenie Poo!!!

This story took almost a full year to think of, write, and edit, and I seriously can’t fathom still to this day how the hell all that time slipped by so quickly. I guess time DOES fly when you’re having fun, right?

Thank you to anyone and EVERYONE who commented, enjoyed, or even gave my work a few moment’s worth of a read. I know I keep mentioning this, but I have to stress it in case some people forget, but the greatest thing an author can receive on a platform like this is your time, devotion, and generous comments. It feels way better than getting paid, sometimes, and it’s honestly what’s kept me going. I looked forward to a lot of people’s comments, because everyone has their own unique personality and spin on how they feel and comment, and it was a lot of fun making new friends, hearing people’s insights, and just talking like online buddies.

Thank you to everyone who made this experience a breath of fresh air and a chiefly fun experience! Believe it or not, you all still hold a good place in my heart, and whenever I have ‘bad days’, I DO come back to certain comments as they cheer me up like you can’t imagine.

Thank you, you wonderful people.

I wanted to also take some time and lay out a real-life case I was inspired by when crafting and piecing together the story of the High Priest. I’m not sure if anyone has ever heard of the ‘Murder of Mark Kilroy’ case. It’s a case I studied for a while, and I was inspired to write the High Priest based off Adolfo Constanzo, who was an American serial killer, drug dealer, and cult leader of an infamous gang, much like ‘Nojus’ in my story. His cult members nicknamed him The Godfather aka ‘El Padrino’, much like Il Tevas in my story being called ‘The Father’.

I will link the articles on this case and this now-deceased insane bastard, because I think it’s a pretty intense study if you’re interested in human psychology, criminology, and also if you wanted to check out the aftermath of the case, which had a positive outcome in regards to Mark’s parents having founded the Mark Kilroy Foundation which promotes drug awareness, education, and prevention through the “Just Say No” campaign.

Links:

Mark Kilroy: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Mark_Kilroy>

Adolfo Constanzo: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolfo_Constanzo>

Beware before you read these, though, because there’s a lot of gory, gruesome details involved in this poor man’s case, and it’s not really something I would recommend for the faint of heart or super young.

All that said, a few people asked me what’s in my future as far as Reed900 fics are concerned, and that’s a very good question I like answering!!!

I don’t know if anyone has noticed (I think some people have anyway), but I’m yet again dabbling into another forced marriage story between Gavin and Nines, but I swear, this story isn’t even remotely like ‘More Than a Woman, More Than a Bride’.

I don’t wish to spoil it a lot for people if they want to read it, but basically, Nines isn’t as much of a bully as he was in this fic, and he is a lot more complicated and broken as far as his personality is concerned. It’s an over all sadder story, and it relies a lot on two very damaged, broken people coming together and finding that there is love and acceptance in the right places, and it’s okay to learn to trust someone again even after years of hurt and betrayal.

If anyone wants to check it out (not to whore myself out here LOL) it’s called ‘Love Him in My Absence’.

I do encourage people to check it out, and I really hope I can keep on developing new Reed900 ideas in the future!!! But who knows? My ideas may branch off into another fandom! Time will tell.

I also realized that I have still yet to comment and reply back to some of you, so please be patient, and don’t ever think I am ignoring you or turning a blind, closed eye to your comments. I really do love each and every one of them I receive, and I promise I will reply to most of them before the week is out!!!

Thank you once again to everyone who supported me, helped me, was patient with me during the story being written and posted, and please know I really admire and appreciate a lot of you who stood by me and were patient enough to help me and be empathetic when I was being harassed and bullied into nearly taking this story off the site. I’m so happy that I didn’t do that, in the end, and while I still receive a few odd messages here and there, I think it’s made me a stronger and better person to not let these things get to me, to rise above it all, and to just keep on smiling, dancing, singing, and laughing while I create more art and dive into my artistic abilities.

 

 

Much love to you all, catch you on the flip side, my dears.🌺🌸🙏💞

Avixi

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Gavin and Tina’s Girl’s Night](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21583735) by [MementoMori13](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MementoMori13/pseuds/MementoMori13)
  * [What You Shouldn’t Do On A First Date](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21626185) by [LadyoftheMasque](https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyoftheMasque/pseuds/LadyoftheMasque)




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